ASML (NASDAQ:ASML) Stock Price Down 1.5% – What’s Next?

ASML Holding (NASDAQ:ASML)’s stock price dropped 1.5% during trading on Thursday . The company traded as low as $715.52 and last traded at $728.80. Approximately 425,176 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 72% from the average daily volume of 1,511,096 shares. The stock had previously closed at $739.75.

Analyst Ratings Changes

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

ASML Trading Down 3.3 %

The company has a quick ratio of 0.99, a current ratio of 1.53 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20. The company has a market capitalization of $281.40 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.39, a P/E/G ratio of 1.62 and a beta of 1.54. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $732.90 and a 200-day moving average price of $750.03.

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

ASML Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, February 19th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 11th were issued a $1.5855 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 11th. This is an increase from ASML’s previous dividend of $1.08. ASML’s dividend payout ratio is 31.35%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On ASML

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in ASML. Carnegie Investment Counsel lifted its position in shares of ASML by 68.9% in the 4th quarter. Carnegie Investment Counsel now owns 2,128 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $1,475,000 after acquiring an additional 868 shares during the period. Central Pacific Bank Trust Division acquired a new position in shares of ASML in the fourth quarter valued at $1,174,000. Taurus Asset Management LLC bought a new position in ASML in the third quarter worth $16,994,000. State Street Corp boosted its stake in ASML by 5.2% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 140,802 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $117,323,000 after buying an additional 7,010 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Stockman Wealth Management Inc. increased its holdings in ASML by 7.2% in the 3rd quarter. Stockman Wealth Management Inc. now owns 15,361 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $12,800,000 after buying an additional 1,032 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 26.07% of the company’s stock.

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.