ASML (NASDAQ:ASML) Stock Price Down 0.5% - Here's What Happened

ASML Holding (NASDAQ:ASML - Get Free Report)'s share price traded down 0.5% during trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as low as $692.80 and last traded at $696.39. 969,664 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 36% from the average session volume of 1,508,902 shares. The stock had previously closed at $699.86.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts recently commented on the company. DZ Bank upgraded ASML from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on ASML from $1,148.00 to $1,100.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Sanford C. Bernstein cut their target price on ASML from $815.00 to $767.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, November 29th. BNP Paribas started coverage on ASML in a report on Tuesday, December 3rd. They set an "outperform" rating and a $858.00 price target for the company. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on ASML from $790.00 to $860.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, January 13th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $937.00.

ASML Stock Up 4.5 %

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 company has a market cap of $291.03 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.56, a P/E/G ratio of 1.62 and a beta of 1.47. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $732.90 and a 200 day moving average price of $750.03.

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%. Sell-side analysts predict that ASML Holding will post 25.17 EPS for the current year.

ASML Increases Dividend

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

Hedge Funds Weigh In On ASML

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Carnegie Investment Counsel increased its stake in shares of 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 bought a new position in shares of ASML in the fourth quarter worth $1,174,000. Taurus Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in ASML in the third quarter worth $16,994,000. State Street Corp grew its position in ASML by 5.2% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 140,802 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $117,323,000 after acquiring an additional 7,010 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Stockman Wealth Management Inc. grew its position in ASML by 7.2% in the third quarter. Stockman Wealth Management Inc. now owns 15,361 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $12,800,000 after acquiring an additional 1,032 shares in the last quarter. 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.