Essex Financial Services Inc. Buys 393 Shares of ASML Holding N.V. $ASML

Essex Financial Services Inc. raised its stake in shares of ASML Holding N.V. (NASDAQ:ASML) by 12.0% in the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 3,669 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock after buying an additional 393 shares during the quarter. Essex Financial Services Inc.’s holdings in ASML were worth $3,552,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Manning & Napier Advisors LLC bought a new position in ASML in the 3rd quarter worth about $25,000. Princeton Global Asset Management LLC increased its stake in ASML by 153.8% during the 2nd quarter. Princeton Global Asset Management LLC now owns 33 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 20 shares in the last quarter. City Holding Co. purchased a new position in ASML in the third quarter worth about $26,000. Binnacle Investments Inc raised its holdings in ASML by 78.9% in the second quarter. Binnacle Investments Inc now owns 34 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 15 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Pin Oak Investment Advisors Inc. bought a new position in shares of ASML in the second quarter worth approximately $30,000. 26.07% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

ASML Stock Performance

ASML stock opened at $1,419.78 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a current ratio of 1.26 and a quick ratio of 0.79. ASML Holding N.V. has a 1 year low of $578.51 and a 1 year high of $1,493.47. The company has a market cap of $558.37 billion, a P/E ratio of 54.99, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.60 and a beta of 1.89. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $1,257.70 and its 200-day moving average price is $1,044.44.

ASML Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, May 5th. Shareholders of record on Monday, April 27th will be paid a dividend of $3.1771 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, April 27th. This represents a $12.71 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.9%. This is an increase from ASML’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.88. ASML’s dividend payout ratio is presently 25.10%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages recently weighed in on ASML. KGI Securities set a $1,415.00 price target on shares of ASML and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 15th. TD Cowen reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of ASML in a research note on Wednesday, January 28th. Sanford C. Bernstein set a $1,911.00 target price on ASML in a report on Thursday, January 29th. Barclays raised ASML from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, January 26th. Finally, Citigroup reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of ASML in a research report on Tuesday, January 20th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty have issued a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, ASML currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $1,475.00.

ASML Company Profile

ASML Holding N.V. (NASDAQ: ASML) is a Dutch company that develops, manufactures and services advanced photolithography systems used to produce semiconductor chips. Headquartered in Veldhoven, Netherlands, ASML supplies capital equipment and associated software and services that enable semiconductor manufacturers to pattern the intricate circuits on silicon wafers. The company is widely recognized for its leadership in extreme ultraviolet (EUV) lithography as well as its deep ultraviolet (DUV) platforms used across multiple process nodes.

ASML’s product portfolio includes EUV and DUV lithography machines, light sources, imaging optics and control software, together with spare parts, upgrades and field services.