Pictet North America Advisors SA Boosts Stake in ASML Holding (NASDAQ:ASML)

Pictet North America Advisors SA grew its stake in shares of ASML Holding (NASDAQ:ASML) by 29.4% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 7,674 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock after buying an additional 1,745 shares during the quarter. Pictet North America Advisors SA’s holdings in ASML were worth $5,319,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Fairway Wealth LLC purchased a new position in ASML in the 3rd quarter worth $25,000. Kennebec Savings Bank increased its holdings in shares of ASML by 227.3% in the fourth quarter. Kennebec Savings Bank now owns 36 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 25 shares during the period. Milestone Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of ASML in the third quarter worth about $28,000. Fortitude Family Office LLC lifted its stake in shares of ASML by 46.9% in the 3rd quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 47 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $39,000 after acquiring an additional 15 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Albion Financial Group UT boosted its holdings in ASML by 133.3% during the 4th quarter. Albion Financial Group UT now owns 56 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $39,000 after acquiring an additional 32 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 26.07% of the company’s stock.

ASML Stock Up 2.8 %

ASML stock opened at $776.99 on Friday. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $727.20 and its 200-day moving average price is $764.22. The stock has a market cap of $305.68 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.36, a PEG ratio of 1.63 and a beta of 1.47. The company has a quick ratio of 0.99, a current ratio of 1.53 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20. ASML Holding has a twelve month low of $645.45 and a twelve month high of $1,110.09.

ASML (NASDAQ:ASML) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The semiconductor company reported $7.30 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $7.67 by ($0.37). ASML had a return on equity of 47.73% and a net margin of 26.78%. On average, equities research analysts forecast that ASML Holding will post 25.17 EPS for the current year.

ASML Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, February 19th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 11th will be issued a $1.5855 dividend. This is a boost from ASML’s previous dividend of $1.08. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, February 11th. ASML’s payout ratio is 26.83%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

ASML has been the topic of several analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on shares of ASML from $1,148.00 to $1,100.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. BNP Paribas started coverage on shares of ASML in a research note on Tuesday, December 3rd. They set an “outperform” rating and a $858.00 price objective for the company. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on ASML from $790.00 to $860.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, January 13th. Sanford C. Bernstein cut their price objective on ASML from $815.00 to $767.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, November 29th. Finally, DZ Bank upgraded shares of ASML from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $937.00.

About ASML

ASML Holding N.V. develops, produces, markets, sells, and services advanced semiconductor equipment systems for chipmakers. It offers advanced semiconductor equipment systems, including lithography, metrology, and inspection systems. The company also provides extreme ultraviolet lithography systems; and deep ultraviolet lithography systems comprising immersion and dry lithography solutions to manufacture various range of semiconductor nodes and technologies.