ASML (NASDAQ:ASML) Trading Up 1.6% - What's Next?

ASML Holding (NASDAQ:ASML - Get Free Report) was up 1.6% during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $687.53 and last traded at $683.37. Approximately 794,044 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 51% from the average daily volume of 1,623,043 shares. The stock had previously closed at $672.87.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have recently issued reports on ASML shares. Susquehanna decreased their price target on ASML from $1,100.00 to $965.00 and set a "positive" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on ASML from $1,148.00 to $1,100.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on ASML from $860.00 to $840.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday. Finally, DZ Bank upgraded shares of ASML from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $906.00.

ASML Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20, a current ratio of 1.53 and a quick ratio of 0.99. The stock's 50 day moving average is $697.51 and its two-hundred day moving average is $713.47. The firm has a market cap of $251.85 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.78, a PEG ratio of 1.62 and a beta of 1.67.

ASML (NASDAQ:ASML - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 16th. The semiconductor company reported $6.31 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $6.12 by $0.19. ASML had a net margin of 26.78% and a return on equity of 47.73%. The firm had revenue of $8.77 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.90 billion. As a group, equities analysts predict that ASML Holding will post 25.17 EPS for the current year.

ASML Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, May 6th. Shareholders of record on Monday, April 28th will be paid a $1.5855 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, April 28th. This is an increase from ASML's previous dividend of $1.08. ASML's payout ratio is currently 27.48%.

Institutional Trading of ASML

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of ASML. Edgewood Management LLC raised its position in shares of ASML by 43.1% during the fourth quarter. Edgewood Management LLC now owns 3,186,667 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $2,208,615,000 after acquiring an additional 959,696 shares during the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp increased its position in ASML by 1.8% in the fourth quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 1,788,280 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $1,239,421,000 after purchasing an additional 31,231 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its holdings in ASML by 70,115.5% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,400,800 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $9,282,120,000 after purchasing an additional 1,398,805 shares during the last quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC lifted its position in ASML by 2.8% during the 4th quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC now owns 1,252,849 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $868,324,000 after purchasing an additional 33,603 shares during the period. Finally, Neuberger Berman Group LLC boosted its stake in shares of ASML by 1.4% in the 4th quarter. Neuberger Berman Group LLC now owns 962,578 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $667,155,000 after purchasing an additional 13,115 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.