ASML Holding (NASDAQ:ASML) Given Consensus Rating of “Moderate Buy” by Analysts

Shares of ASML Holding (NASDAQ:ASML) have received an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the eleven brokerages that are currently covering the firm, MarketBeat reports. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, eight have assigned a buy recommendation and one has assigned a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average twelve-month price objective among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $937.00.

Several research analysts have weighed in on ASML shares. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on shares of ASML from $790.00 to $860.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, January 13th. BNP Paribas started coverage on shares of ASML in a report on Tuesday, December 3rd. They set an “outperform” rating and a $858.00 price objective on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on shares of ASML from $1,148.00 to $1,100.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Sanford C. Bernstein lowered their price objective on shares of ASML from $815.00 to $767.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, November 29th. Finally, DZ Bank upgraded shares of ASML from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 30th.

Institutional Trading of ASML

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Kennebec Savings Bank boosted its position in shares of ASML by 227.3% in the fourth quarter. Kennebec Savings Bank now owns 36 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 25 shares during the period. Wellington Shields & Co. LLC boosted its position in shares of ASML by 740.0% in the fourth quarter. Wellington Shields & Co. LLC now owns 42 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 37 shares during the period. Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of ASML in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Albion Financial Group UT boosted its position in shares of ASML by 133.3% in the fourth quarter. Albion Financial Group UT now owns 56 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $39,000 after acquiring an additional 32 shares during the period. Finally, Roxbury Financial LLC bought a new position in shares of ASML in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $39,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 26.07% of the company’s stock.

ASML Stock Up 2.8 %

ASML stock opened at $714.00 on Monday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.99, a current ratio of 1.53 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20. ASML has a 12-month low of $645.45 and a 12-month high of $1,110.09. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $733.01 and its 200 day moving average is $738.78. The company has a market capitalization of $280.90 billion, a PE ratio of 34.33, a PEG ratio of 1.62 and a beta of 1.54.

ASML (NASDAQ:ASML) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The semiconductor company reported $7.30 earnings per share (EPS) 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%. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that ASML will post 25.17 EPS for the current fiscal year.

ASML Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, February 19th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 11th were issued 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 dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 31.35%.

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.