ASML (NASDAQ:ASML) Trading Down 1.8%

ASML Holding (NASDAQ:ASML)’s share price dropped 1.8% during mid-day trading on Thursday . The stock traded as low as $1,074.38 and last traded at $1,078.84. Approximately 360,407 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 68% from the average daily volume of 1,114,839 shares. The stock had previously closed at $1,098.95.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have weighed in on the stock. Sanford C. Bernstein decreased their target price on shares of ASML from $1,072.00 to $1,052.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, April 12th. Susquehanna raised their target price on ASML from $1,200.00 to $1,300.00 and gave the stock a “positive” rating in a research note on Thursday. Evercore ISI began coverage on ASML in a research note on Tuesday, April 16th. They issued an “outperform” rating on the stock. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on ASML from $1,150.00 to $1,185.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, June 17th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, ASML has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $1,083.00.

ASML Price Performance

The company’s 50-day moving average price is $992.65 and its 200-day moving average price is $925.79. The company has a quick ratio of 0.88, a current ratio of 1.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33. The firm has a market cap of $419.25 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 55.11, a PEG ratio of 2.28 and a beta of 1.49.

ASML (NASDAQ:ASML) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, April 17th. The semiconductor company reported $3.38 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.84 by $0.54. ASML had a net margin of 27.23% and a return on equity of 56.99%. The company had revenue of $5.74 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.73 billion. On average, equities research analysts forecast that ASML Holding will post 20.12 EPS for the current year.

ASML Cuts Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, May 7th. Investors of record on Monday, April 29th were paid a dividend of $1.343 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, April 26th. This represents a $5.37 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.51%. ASML’s payout ratio is 32.48%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On ASML

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Hilltop National Bank increased its stake in shares of ASML by 1.0% during the second quarter. Hilltop National Bank now owns 975 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $997,000 after buying an additional 10 shares during the period. First PREMIER Bank increased its position in shares of ASML by 4.2% in the 1st quarter. First PREMIER Bank now owns 273 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $265,000 after purchasing an additional 11 shares during the last quarter. Investment Partners LTD. raised its holdings in shares of ASML by 1.2% in the 1st quarter. Investment Partners LTD. now owns 898 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $871,000 after purchasing an additional 11 shares in the last quarter. Toth Financial Advisory Corp lifted its position in shares of ASML by 11.5% during the 4th quarter. Toth Financial Advisory Corp now owns 126 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $95,000 after purchasing an additional 13 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Slow Capital Inc. grew its stake in shares of ASML by 0.3% during the fourth quarter. Slow Capital Inc. now owns 4,407 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $3,336,000 after purchasing an additional 13 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors 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.