Azimuth Capital Investment Management LLC Sells 1,836 Shares of ASML Holding (NASDAQ:ASML)

Azimuth Capital Investment Management LLC reduced its holdings in ASML Holding (NASDAQ:ASML) by 13.1% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 12,224 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock after selling 1,836 shares during the period. Azimuth Capital Investment Management LLC’s holdings in ASML were worth $8,472,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Carnegie Investment Counsel raised its stake in ASML by 68.9% during the 4th quarter. Carnegie Investment Counsel now owns 2,128 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $1,475,000 after purchasing an additional 868 shares during the last quarter. Central Pacific Bank Trust Division bought a new position in shares of ASML during the 4th quarter worth about $1,174,000. State Street Corp raised its position in shares of ASML by 5.2% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 140,802 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $117,323,000 after buying an additional 7,010 shares during the last quarter. Foundations Investment Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of ASML by 36.7% in the fourth quarter. Foundations Investment Advisors LLC now owns 26,322 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $18,243,000 after buying an additional 7,073 shares during the period. Finally, Fifth Third Bancorp grew its position in ASML by 12.2% during the fourth quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 9,759 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $6,764,000 after buying an additional 1,062 shares in the last quarter. 26.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have commented on ASML. DZ Bank upgraded ASML from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. 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 report on Monday, January 13th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on shares of ASML from $1,148.00 to $1,100.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, ASML currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $937.00.

ASML Stock Down 3.3 %

Shares of NASDAQ:ASML opened at $595.37 on Wednesday. The company’s fifty day moving average is $711.14 and its 200-day moving average is $722.20. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20, a quick ratio of 0.99 and a current ratio of 1.53. ASML Holding has a 52 week low of $578.51 and a 52 week high of $1,110.09. The company has a market capitalization of $234.23 billion, a PE ratio of 28.62, a P/E/G ratio of 1.62 and a beta of 1.67.

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

ASML Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, May 6th. Shareholders of record on Monday, April 28th will be paid a $1.5855 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, April 28th. This is an increase from ASML’s previous dividend of $1.08. ASML’s payout ratio is currently 31.35%.

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.