ASML (NASDAQ:ASML) Shares Down 1.4%

ASML Holding (NASDAQ:ASML)’s share price fell 1.4% during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The company traded as low as $789.00 and last traded at $794.35. 342,744 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 73% from the average session volume of 1,252,224 shares. The stock had previously closed at $805.69.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts recently commented on the stock. UBS Group lowered shares of ASML from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 4th. Barclays raised ASML from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 30th. Susquehanna raised their price target on ASML from $1,200.00 to $1,300.00 and gave the stock a “positive” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 11th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on shares of ASML from $1,150.00 to $1,185.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, June 17th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on ASML from $1,172.00 to $1,202.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, July 18th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $1,147.80.

ASML Stock Performance

The company has a market capitalization of $314.07 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.57, a PEG ratio of 1.96 and a beta of 1.49. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31, a current ratio of 1.52 and a quick ratio of 0.84. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $887.62 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $943.15.

ASML (NASDAQ:ASML) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 17th. The semiconductor company reported $4.01 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.87 by $0.14. The firm had revenue of $6.24 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6 billion. ASML had a return on equity of 49.93% and a net margin of 26.50%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 9.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $5.37 EPS. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that ASML Holding will post 20.38 EPS for the current fiscal year.

ASML Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, August 7th. Stockholders of record on Monday, July 29th were issued a dividend of $1.8732 per share. This is a boost from ASML’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.34. This represents a $7.49 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.94%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, July 29th. ASML’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 28.50%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On ASML

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in ASML. American Capital Advisory LLC bought a new position in shares of ASML in the first quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Resources Management Corp CT ADV bought a new stake in shares of ASML in the 2nd quarter worth $26,000. WD Rutherford LLC purchased a new stake in shares of ASML in the first quarter valued at about $29,000. Triad Wealth Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of ASML during the second quarter valued at about $31,000. Finally, Beaird Harris Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in ASML during the fourth quarter worth about $34,000. 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.