Montag A & Associates Inc. Boosts Holdings in ASML Holding (NASDAQ:ASML)

Montag A & Associates Inc. boosted its position in shares of ASML Holding (NASDAQ:ASML) by 87.3% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 1,208 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock after purchasing an additional 563 shares during the quarter. Montag A & Associates Inc.’s holdings in ASML were worth $837,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Carnegie Investment Counsel increased 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 in the last quarter. Central Pacific Bank Trust Division acquired a new position in ASML during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $1,174,000. Taurus Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in ASML during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $16,994,000. State Street Corp increased its stake in ASML by 5.2% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 140,802 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $117,323,000 after purchasing an additional 7,010 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Stockman Wealth Management Inc. increased its stake in ASML by 7.2% during the 3rd quarter. Stockman Wealth Management Inc. now owns 15,361 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $12,800,000 after purchasing an additional 1,032 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 26.07% of the company’s stock.

ASML Stock Down 3.3 %

ASML stock opened at $751.55 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $295.68 billion, a PE ratio of 36.13, a P/E/G ratio of 1.63 and a beta of 1.47. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20, a quick ratio of 0.99 and a current ratio of 1.53. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $729.36 and its 200 day moving average is $762.81. ASML Holding has a one year low of $645.45 and a one year high of $1,110.09.

ASML (NASDAQ:ASML) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The semiconductor company reported $7.30 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $7.67 by ($0.37). ASML had a net margin of 26.78% and a return on equity of 47.73%. On average, research analysts forecast that ASML Holding will post 25.17 EPS for the current year.

ASML Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, February 19th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 11th will be given a dividend of $1.5855 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, February 11th. This is a positive change from ASML’s previous dividend of $1.08. ASML’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 31.35%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have issued reports on ASML shares. BNP Paribas started coverage on shares of ASML in a research note on Tuesday, December 3rd. They set an “outperform” rating and a $858.00 price target on the stock. DZ Bank upgraded shares of ASML from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of ASML from $790.00 to $860.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, January 13th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on shares of ASML from $1,148.00 to $1,100.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein cut their price objective 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. Three equities research 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 stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $937.00.

ASML Company Profile

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.