Auxano Advisors LLC Makes New $587,000 Investment in ASML Holding (NASDAQ:ASML)

Auxano Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in ASML Holding (NASDAQ:ASML - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 847 shares of the semiconductor company's stock, valued at approximately $587,000.

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Van ECK Associates Corp grew its position in ASML by 37.0% during the third quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 1,757,049 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $1,464,061,000 after buying an additional 474,653 shares in the last quarter. Fisher Funds Management LTD purchased a new position in ASML during the fourth quarter worth about $137,386,000. SG Americas Securities LLC grew its position in ASML by 281.3% during the fourth quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 156,693 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $108,601,000 after buying an additional 115,603 shares in the last quarter. Westfield Capital Management Co. LP grew its position in ASML by 126.4% during the third quarter. Westfield Capital Management Co. LP now owns 148,377 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $123,635,000 after buying an additional 82,836 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Empirical Asset Management LLC grew its position in ASML by 2,825.3% during the fourth quarter. Empirical Asset Management LLC now owns 84,191 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $58,351,000 after buying an additional 81,313 shares in the last quarter. 26.07% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on the company. DZ Bank raised ASML from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on 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. dropped their price target 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. Sanford C. Bernstein dropped their price target on ASML from $815.00 to $767.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, November 29th. Finally, BNP Paribas assumed coverage on ASML in a research note on Tuesday, December 3rd. They set an "outperform" rating and a $858.00 price target for the company. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $937.00.

ASML Trading Up 4.5 %

Shares of NASDAQ ASML traded up $31.53 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $739.75. The company had a trading volume of 1,751,919 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,515,217. ASML Holding has a one year low of $645.45 and a one year high of $1,110.09. The company has a quick ratio of 0.99, a current ratio of 1.53 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $732.90 and its 200-day moving average price is $750.03. The stock has a market cap of $291.03 billion, a PE ratio of 35.56, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.62 and a beta of 1.47.

ASML (NASDAQ:ASML - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly 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 net margin of 26.78% and a return on equity of 47.73%. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that ASML Holding will post 25.17 earnings per share for the current year.

ASML Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, February 19th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 11th were issued a dividend of $1.5855 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 11th. This is an increase from ASML's previous dividend of $1.08. ASML's payout ratio is currently 31.35%.

ASML 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.