ASML (NASDAQ:ASML) Stock Price Down 0.4% – Time to Sell?

ASML Holding (NASDAQ:ASML)’s stock price traded down 0.4% during trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as low as $725.06 and last traded at $728.41. 255,854 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 83% from the average session volume of 1,517,179 shares. The stock had previously closed at $731.11.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on the company. BNP Paribas assumed coverage on ASML in a research note on Tuesday, December 3rd. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $858.00 price objective for the company. Sanford C. Bernstein reduced their price objective on ASML from $815.00 to $767.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, November 29th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on ASML from $790.00 to $860.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, January 13th. DZ Bank upgraded ASML from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on 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 research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have assigned 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 an average price target of $937.00.

ASML Price Performance

The company has a current ratio of 1.53, a quick ratio of 0.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20. The firm has a market cap of $287.86 billion, a PE ratio of 35.14, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.62 and a beta of 1.54. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $731.72 and a 200-day simple moving average of $736.46.

ASML (NASDAQ:ASML) last released 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 analysts anticipate that ASML Holding will post 25.17 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

ASML Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, February 19th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 11th were issued a dividend of $1.5855 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 11th. This is an increase from ASML’s previous dividend of $1.08. ASML’s dividend payout ratio is 31.35%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. 111 Capital bought a new position in shares of ASML during the 4th quarter valued at about $482,000. Centaurus Financial Inc. raised its position in ASML by 89.0% during the fourth quarter. Centaurus Financial Inc. now owns 2,659 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $1,843,000 after purchasing an additional 1,252 shares during the period. Aegis Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of ASML in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $468,000. Probity Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in shares of ASML in the 4th quarter worth approximately $238,000. Finally, Siemens Fonds Invest GmbH increased its position in shares of ASML by 2,336.6% during the 4th quarter. Siemens Fonds Invest GmbH now owns 34,210 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $23,710,000 after purchasing an additional 32,806 shares during the last quarter. 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.