ASML (NASDAQ:ASML) Trading Up 2.2% After Dividend Announcement

ASML Holding (NASDAQ:ASML)’s stock price rose 2.2% during mid-day trading on Tuesday following a dividend announcement from the company. The stock traded as high as $892.97 and last traded at $891.38. Approximately 248,463 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 80% from the average daily volume of 1,238,452 shares. The stock had previously closed at $872.05.

The newly announced dividend which will be paid on Tuesday, May 7th. Investors of record on Monday, April 29th will be given a $1.343 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 26th. This represents a $5.37 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.60%. ASML’s payout ratio is 27.02%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently weighed in on the company. Evercore ISI assumed coverage on ASML in a research report on Tuesday, April 16th. They issued an “outperform” rating for the company. Sanford C. Bernstein decreased their price target on ASML from $1,072.00 to $1,052.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, April 12th. Cantor Fitzgerald assumed coverage on ASML in a research note on Tuesday, January 23rd. They issued an “overweight” rating on the stock. Kepler Capital Markets raised ASML from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, January 8th. Finally, HSBC assumed coverage on ASML in a research note on Thursday, February 22nd. They issued a “buy” rating on the stock. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $1,036.00.

ASML Stock Performance

The company has a market capitalization of $352.10 billion, a PE ratio of 45.57, a PEG ratio of 2.17 and a beta of 1.48. The company has a 50 day moving average of $956.36 and a two-hundred day moving average of $801.54. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a current ratio of 1.54 and a quick ratio of 0.88.

ASML (NASDAQ:ASML) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 24th. The semiconductor company reported $5.60 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $5.12 by $0.48. The company had revenue of $7.79 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.34 billion. ASML had a return on equity of 56.99% and a net margin of 27.23%. As a group, equities research analysts predict that ASML Holding will post 20.11 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On ASML

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in ASML. Townsquare Capital LLC boosted its holdings in ASML by 11.5% in the third quarter. Townsquare Capital LLC now owns 8,516 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $5,013,000 after acquiring an additional 881 shares in the last quarter. Savoie Capital LLC bought a new position in shares of ASML during the third quarter valued at $14,658,000. International Assets Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of ASML by 48,040.7% during the fourth quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 245,999 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $186,202,000 after purchasing an additional 245,488 shares in the last quarter. CenterBook Partners LP lifted its holdings in shares of ASML by 69.2% during the third quarter. CenterBook Partners LP now owns 11,529 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $6,787,000 after purchasing an additional 4,716 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Meitav Investment House Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of ASML by 219.0% during the fourth quarter. Meitav Investment House Ltd. now owns 3,158 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $2,195,000 after purchasing an additional 2,168 shares in the last quarter. 26.07% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.