ASML (NASDAQ:ASML) Stock Price Up 0.6% – Still a Buy?

ASML Holding (NASDAQ:ASML)’s stock price traded up 0.6% during mid-day trading on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $720.00 and last traded at $713.12. 594,143 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 57% from the average session volume of 1,385,339 shares. The stock had previously closed at $708.62.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have weighed in on ASML. Berenberg Bank upgraded shares of ASML to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 2nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on ASML from $1,207.00 to $1,148.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, October 17th. UBS Group cut ASML from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 4th. Sanford C. Bernstein lowered their target price on ASML from $1,052.00 to $815.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Monday. Finally, Susquehanna decreased their price objective on shares of ASML from $1,300.00 to $1,100.00 and set a “positive” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, October 11th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $970.60.

ASML Price Performance

The company has a market capitalization of $280.26 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.42, a P/E/G ratio of 2.08 and a beta of 1.48. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $825.27 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $910.74. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a current ratio of 1.52.

ASML Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, November 7th. Investors of record on Tuesday, October 29th will be given a dividend of $1.407 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, October 29th. This represents a $5.63 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.79%. ASML’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 28.70%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On ASML

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of ASML. KP Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of ASML by 66.7% during the 2nd quarter. KP Management LLC now owns 5,000 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $5,114,000 after buying an additional 2,000 shares during the last quarter. Harvard Management Co. Inc. increased its stake in ASML by 239.8% during the second quarter. Harvard Management Co. Inc. now owns 93,519 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $95,645,000 after acquiring an additional 66,000 shares during the last quarter. Pictet North America Advisors SA raised its holdings in shares of ASML by 15.0% in the 3rd quarter. Pictet North America Advisors SA now owns 5,929 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $4,940,000 after purchasing an additional 773 shares during the period. Point72 DIFC Ltd lifted its stake in shares of ASML by 122.1% in the 2nd quarter. Point72 DIFC Ltd now owns 6,415 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $6,560,000 after purchasing an additional 3,527 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Cetera Investment Advisers lifted its stake in shares of ASML by 169.4% in the 1st quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 23,351 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $22,661,000 after purchasing an additional 14,682 shares in the last quarter. 26.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.