ASML (NASDAQ:ASML) Trading Down 0.1% - Here's What Happened

ASML Holding (NASDAQ:ASML - Get Free Report) fell 0.1% during trading on Wednesday . The company traded as low as $741.69 and last traded at $743.80. 329,488 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 82% from the average session volume of 1,789,433 shares. The stock had previously closed at $744.22.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have commented on ASML. Sanford C. Bernstein cut their target price on shares of ASML from $815.00 to $767.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, November 29th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on shares of 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. BNP Paribas began coverage on shares of ASML in a research report on Tuesday, December 3rd. They set an "outperform" rating and a $858.00 target price on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of ASML from $790.00 to $860.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, January 13th. Finally, DZ Bank raised shares of ASML from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, ASML currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $937.00.

ASML Stock Performance

The business's 50-day moving average price is $732.62 and its 200-day moving average price is $759.39. The company has a current ratio of 1.53, a quick ratio of 0.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20. The stock has a market cap of $289.96 billion, a PE ratio of 35.43, a P/E/G ratio of 1.64 and a beta of 1.47.

ASML (NASDAQ:ASML - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The semiconductor company reported $7.30 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $7.67 by ($0.37). ASML had a return on equity of 47.73% and a net margin of 26.78%. As a group, equities research analysts expect that ASML Holding will post 25.17 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

ASML Increases Dividend

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

Institutional Trading of ASML

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Carnegie Investment Counsel grew its position in ASML by 68.9% during the 4th quarter. Carnegie Investment Counsel now owns 2,128 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $1,475,000 after purchasing an additional 868 shares during the last quarter. Central Pacific Bank Trust Division purchased a new stake in ASML during the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,174,000. Taurus Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in ASML during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $16,994,000. State Street Corp lifted its stake in ASML by 5.2% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 140,802 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $117,323,000 after acquiring an additional 7,010 shares during the period. Finally, Stockman Wealth Management Inc. lifted its stake in ASML by 7.2% during the 3rd quarter. Stockman Wealth Management Inc. now owns 15,361 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $12,800,000 after acquiring an additional 1,032 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 26.07% of the company's stock.

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.