ASML (NASDAQ:ASML) Shares Down 0.3% – Here’s Why

ASML Holding (NASDAQ:ASML)’s share price dropped 0.3% during mid-day trading on Thursday . The stock traded as low as $711.11 and last traded at $717.55. Approximately 230,465 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 84% from the average daily volume of 1,452,182 shares. The stock had previously closed at $719.71.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have commented on the stock. UBS Group cut shares of ASML from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 4th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on ASML from $1,000.00 to $790.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. Sanford C. Bernstein reduced their target price on shares of ASML from $815.00 to $767.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, November 29th. BNP Paribas assumed coverage on shares of ASML in a research report on Tuesday, December 3rd. They set an “outperform” rating and a $858.00 target price for the company. Finally, Berenberg Bank upgraded shares of ASML to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 2nd. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $943.83.

ASML Stock Down 0.5 %

The firm’s 50-day moving average is $695.20 and its two-hundred day moving average is $834.28. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a current ratio of 1.55. The stock has a market cap of $281.84 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.51, a PEG ratio of 2.07 and a beta of 1.49.

ASML (NASDAQ:ASML) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 15th. The semiconductor company reported $5.80 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $5.24 by $0.56. ASML had a return on equity of 47.61% and a net margin of 26.40%. The business had revenue of $8.21 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.66 billion. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that ASML Holding will post 20.68 earnings per share for the current year.

ASML Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, November 7th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, October 29th were paid a $1.407 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, October 29th. This represents a $5.63 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.79%. ASML’s payout ratio is presently 29.21%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On ASML

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its position in shares of ASML by 104.4% during the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 7,009 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $5,840,000 after buying an additional 3,580 shares during the period. B. Riley Wealth Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in ASML by 2.8% in the third quarter. B. Riley Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 5,977 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $4,980,000 after purchasing an additional 164 shares during the period. SPX Gestao de Recursos Ltda bought a new position in shares of ASML during the third quarter worth $4,166,000. Milestone Resources Group Ltd grew its stake in ASML by 0.6% in the third quarter. Milestone Resources Group Ltd now owns 14,115 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $11,761,000 after acquiring an additional 91 shares during the period. Finally, FFG Partners LLC bought a new stake in ASML during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $341,000. 26.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.