ASML (NASDAQ:ASML) Stock Price Down 2.4% – What’s Next?

Shares of ASML Holding (NASDAQ:ASML) dropped 2.4% on Thursday . The company traded as low as $727.63 and last traded at $729.10. Approximately 582,977 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 67% from the average daily volume of 1,741,254 shares. The stock had previously closed at $746.93.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on ASML shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on ASML from $1,148.00 to $1,100.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. BNP Paribas started coverage on ASML in a report on Tuesday, December 3rd. They set an “outperform” rating and a $858.00 target price on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on ASML from $790.00 to $860.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, January 13th. Sanford C. Bernstein reduced 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. Finally, DZ Bank raised shares of ASML from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $937.00.

ASML Stock Up 1.6 %

The stock has a market capitalization of $278.82 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.07, a P/E/G ratio of 1.62 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 simple moving average is $733.15 and its 200 day simple moving average is $754.88.

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

ASML Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, February 19th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 11th were given a $1.5855 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 11th. This is an increase from ASML’s previous dividend of $1.08. ASML’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 31.35%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On ASML

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Fairway Wealth LLC acquired a new position in shares of ASML during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $25,000. Milestone Investment Advisors LLC bought a new position in ASML during the third quarter worth $28,000. Kennebec Savings Bank increased its holdings in shares of ASML by 227.3% in the fourth quarter. Kennebec Savings Bank now owns 36 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 25 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Shields & Co. LLC raised its position in shares of ASML by 740.0% in the fourth quarter. Wellington Shields & Co. LLC now owns 42 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 37 shares during the period. Finally, Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of ASML during the 4th quarter worth about $31,000. 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.