ASML (NASDAQ:ASML) Trading 0.8% Higher – Here’s What Happened

ASML Holding (NASDAQ:ASML)’s share price shot up 0.8% during trading on Friday . The stock traded as high as $682.76 and last traded at $678.18. 462,101 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 67% from the average session volume of 1,399,028 shares. The stock had previously closed at $672.55.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have commented on ASML. UBS Group cut ASML from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 4th. Berenberg Bank raised ASML to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 2nd. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on ASML from $1,000.00 to $790.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, October 17th. Sanford C. Bernstein cut their price target on ASML from $1,052.00 to $815.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Monday, October 21st. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on ASML from $1,207.00 to $1,148.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, October 17th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, ASML has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $970.60.

ASML Stock Performance

The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $798.17 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $899.57. The company has a market capitalization of $267.32 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.51, a P/E/G ratio of 1.98 and a beta of 1.48. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 1.55 and a quick ratio of 0.84.

ASML Cuts Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, November 7th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, October 29th will be given a dividend of $1.407 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, October 29th. This represents a $5.63 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.83%. ASML’s payout ratio is 29.21%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On ASML

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Hilltop National Bank increased its stake in ASML by 1.0% in the second quarter. Hilltop National Bank now owns 975 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $997,000 after purchasing an additional 10 shares in the last quarter. Valley National Advisers Inc. lifted its stake in ASML by 1.1% in the second quarter. Valley National Advisers Inc. now owns 1,134 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $1,159,000 after acquiring an additional 12 shares during the last quarter. Pure Financial Advisors LLC lifted its stake in ASML by 2.8% in the second quarter. Pure Financial Advisors LLC now owns 444 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $454,000 after acquiring an additional 12 shares during the last quarter. First Pacific Financial lifted its stake in shares of ASML by 1.1% during the 2nd quarter. First Pacific Financial now owns 1,121 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $1,146,000 after buying an additional 12 shares during the last quarter. Finally, RMR Wealth Builders lifted its stake in shares of ASML by 0.6% during the 2nd quarter. RMR Wealth Builders now owns 2,114 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $2,162,000 after buying an additional 12 shares during the last quarter. 26.07% of the stock is currently 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.