ASML (NASDAQ:ASML) Shares Gap Up - Here's What Happened

Shares of ASML Holding (NASDAQ:ASML - Get Free Report) gapped up prior to trading on Thursday . The stock had previously closed at $726.30, but opened at $758.80. ASML shares last traded at $754.24, with a volume of 426,023 shares changing hands.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on ASML shares. Morgan Stanley lowered shares of ASML from an "overweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating in a report on Friday, September 20th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on shares of ASML from $1,207.00 to $1,148.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, October 17th. BNP Paribas started coverage on shares of ASML in a report on Tuesday, December 3rd. They set an "outperform" rating and a $858.00 price objective on the stock. Sanford C. Bernstein dropped their price objective on shares of ASML from $815.00 to $767.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, November 29th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on shares of ASML from $790.00 to $860.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, January 13th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $955.50.

ASML Trading Up 0.8 %

The company has a quick ratio of 0.84, a current ratio of 1.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. The firm's 50-day moving average price is $706.71 and its 200 day moving average price is $799.04. The company has a market capitalization of $297.56 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.60, a P/E/G ratio of 2.30 and a beta of 1.47.

ASML (NASDAQ:ASML - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, October 15th. The semiconductor company reported $5.80 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $5.24 by $0.56. ASML had a net margin of 26.40% and a return on equity of 47.61%. The company had revenue of $8.21 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.66 billion. As a group, equities research analysts predict that ASML Holding will post 20.57 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On ASML

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Fisher Asset Management LLC grew its position in shares of ASML by 1.0% during the 3rd quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 3,186,222 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $2,654,921,000 after acquiring an additional 31,879 shares during the period. Edgewood Management LLC grew its position in shares of ASML by 3.3% during the 3rd quarter. Edgewood Management LLC now owns 2,226,971 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $1,855,624,000 after acquiring an additional 70,776 shares during the period. Van ECK Associates Corp grew its position in shares of ASML by 37.0% during the 3rd quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 1,757,049 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $1,464,061,000 after acquiring an additional 474,653 shares during the period. Windacre Partnership LLC grew its position in shares of ASML by 4.0% during the 3rd quarter. Windacre Partnership LLC now owns 664,100 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $553,361,000 after acquiring an additional 25,600 shares during the period. Finally, Lone Pine Capital LLC grew its position in shares of ASML by 19.0% during the 2nd quarter. Lone Pine Capital LLC now owns 587,891 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $601,254,000 after acquiring an additional 93,851 shares during the period. 26.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.