ASML Holding (NASDAQ:ASML) Given Average Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

Shares of ASML Holding (NASDAQ:ASML) have earned an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the thirteen ratings firms that are currently covering the firm, MarketBeat reports. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, nine have issued a buy recommendation and one has issued a strong buy recommendation on the company. The average 12-month price objective among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $1,036.00.

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Susquehanna increased their price objective on ASML from $830.00 to $1,100.00 and gave the company a “positive” rating in a research report on Friday, January 26th. Kepler Capital Markets upgraded ASML from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, January 8th. Raymond James upped their target price on ASML from $850.00 to $1,000.00 and gave the company a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 25th. Cantor Fitzgerald started coverage on ASML in a research note on Tuesday, January 23rd. They issued an “overweight” rating for the company. Finally, Redburn Atlantic upgraded ASML from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 20th.

ASML Stock Up 1.1 %

Shares of ASML stock opened at $902.51 on Friday. ASML has a 12-month low of $563.99 and a 12-month high of $1,056.34. The company has a quick ratio of 0.88, a current ratio of 1.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33. The stock has a market capitalization of $356.12 billion, a P/E ratio of 46.09, a PEG ratio of 2.25 and a beta of 1.48. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $955.81 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $802.24.

ASML (NASDAQ:ASML) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 24th. The semiconductor company reported $5.60 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $5.12 by $0.48. ASML had a return on equity of 56.99% and a net margin of 27.23%. The company had revenue of $7.79 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.34 billion. Equities analysts expect that ASML will post 20.04 earnings per share for the current year.

ASML Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, May 7th. Investors of record on Monday, April 29th will be given a $1.343 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 26th. This represents a $5.37 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.60%. ASML’s dividend payout ratio is presently 27.02%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On ASML

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Fisher Asset Management LLC grew its position in shares of ASML by 2.2% in the 4th quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 4,977,359 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $3,767,464,000 after purchasing an additional 105,196 shares during the period. FMR LLC lifted its stake in ASML by 3.6% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 3,607,702 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $2,123,710,000 after acquiring an additional 126,413 shares in the last quarter. Sands Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in ASML by 8.1% in the 4th quarter. Sands Capital Management LLC now owns 1,617,083 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $1,224,002,000 after acquiring an additional 121,847 shares in the last quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC lifted its stake in ASML by 2.7% in the 4th quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC now owns 1,247,197 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $944,028,000 after acquiring an additional 32,623 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA lifted its stake in ASML by 2.1% in the 4th quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 1,173,324 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $888,112,000 after acquiring an additional 24,368 shares in the last quarter. 26.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.