ASML Holding (NASDAQ:ASML) Shares Sold by Bessemer Group Inc.

Bessemer Group Inc. lessened its stake in ASML Holding (NASDAQ:ASML - Free Report) by 4.5% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 173,962 shares of the semiconductor company's stock after selling 8,188 shares during the quarter. Bessemer Group Inc.'s holdings in ASML were worth $120,571,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of ASML. Kennebec Savings Bank boosted its position in shares of ASML by 227.3% during the 4th quarter. Kennebec Savings Bank now owns 36 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 25 shares during the period. Wellington Shields & Co. LLC raised its position in shares of ASML by 740.0% during the 4th quarter. Wellington Shields & Co. LLC now owns 42 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 37 shares in the last quarter. Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of ASML in the 4th quarter valued at $31,000. Albion Financial Group UT increased its position in shares of ASML by 133.3% during the fourth quarter. Albion Financial Group UT now owns 56 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $39,000 after purchasing an additional 32 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Roxbury Financial LLC purchased a new position in ASML during the 4th quarter worth approximately $39,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 26.07% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on shares of ASML from $790.00 to $860.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, January 13th. DZ Bank upgraded shares of ASML from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on shares of 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. Two 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's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, ASML currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $937.00.

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ASML Trading Down 0.2 %

Shares of ASML traded down $1.66 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $667.15. The stock had a trading volume of 753,081 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,623,045. ASML Holding has a 12-month low of $578.51 and a 12-month high of $1,110.09. The firm has a market cap of $262.47 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.07, a P/E/G ratio of 1.62 and a beta of 1.67. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20, a quick ratio of 0.99 and a current ratio of 1.53. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $706.22 and its 200 day simple moving average is $718.04.

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 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%. Equities research analysts forecast that ASML Holding will post 25.17 EPS for the current fiscal year.

ASML Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, May 6th. Shareholders of record on Monday, April 28th will be given a $1.5855 dividend. This is an increase from ASML's previous dividend of $1.08. The ex-dividend date is Monday, April 28th. ASML's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 31.35%.

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.