ASML Holding (NASDAQ:ASML) Shares Sold by Polen Capital Management LLC

Polen Capital Management LLC reduced its stake in shares of ASML Holding (NASDAQ:ASML) by 7.6% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 62,141 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock after selling 5,142 shares during the quarter. Polen Capital Management LLC’s holdings in ASML were worth $43,069,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of ASML. Carnegie Investment Counsel grew its position in 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 purchased a new position in ASML during the 4th quarter worth $1,174,000. Taurus Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in ASML during the 3rd quarter worth $16,994,000. State Street Corp grew its position in ASML by 5.2% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 140,802 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $117,323,000 after purchasing an additional 7,010 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Foundations Investment Advisors LLC grew its position in ASML by 36.7% during the 4th quarter. Foundations Investment Advisors LLC now owns 26,322 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $18,243,000 after purchasing an additional 7,073 shares during the last quarter. 26.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

ASML Stock Up 2.8 %

Shares of NASDAQ ASML 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 Holding has a 52 week low of $645.45 and a 52 week high of $1,110.09. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $733.01 and a 200 day moving average price of $738.78. The stock has a market capitalization of $280.90 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.33, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.62 and a beta of 1.54.

ASML (NASDAQ:ASML) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The semiconductor company reported $7.30 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate 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 anticipate that ASML Holding will post 25.17 EPS for the current fiscal year.

ASML Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, February 19th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 11th were given a dividend of $1.5855 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 11th. This is a boost from ASML’s previous dividend of $1.08. ASML’s payout ratio is presently 31.35%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have issued reports 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 research report on Thursday, January 30th. DZ Bank raised shares of ASML from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, January 30th. BNP Paribas began coverage on shares of ASML in a report on Tuesday, December 3rd. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $858.00 target price on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of ASML from $790.00 to $860.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, January 13th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein lowered their target price 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. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $937.00.

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.