ASML (NASDAQ:ASML) Downgraded to Hold Rating by Zacks Research

Zacks Research cut shares of ASML (NASDAQ:ASML) from a strong-buy rating to a hold rating in a report published on Tuesday morning,Zacks.com reports.

ASML has been the topic of several other research reports. Susquehanna boosted their target price on ASML from $965.00 to $1,150.00 and gave the company a “positive” rating in a research note on Friday, October 10th. Barclays restated a “neutral” rating on shares of ASML in a report on Wednesday, November 26th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of ASML in a research note on Wednesday. Berenberg Bank restated a “buy” rating on shares of ASML in a research note on Thursday, October 16th. Finally, Rothschild & Co Redburn raised ASML from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, November 7th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have issued a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $1,171.83.

ASML Trading Down 0.8%

NASDAQ ASML opened at $1,110.59 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $436.77 billion, a P/E ratio of 45.28, a P/E/G ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 1.87. ASML has a one year low of $578.51 and a one year high of $1,141.72. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a current ratio of 1.31 and a quick ratio of 0.70. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $1,037.10 and its 200-day moving average is $871.75.

ASML (NASDAQ:ASML) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 15th. The semiconductor company reported $6.41 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.27 by $0.14. ASML had a net margin of 27.08% and a return on equity of 47.74%. The business had revenue of $8.80 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.99 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $5.28 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up .7% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts anticipate that ASML will post 25.17 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

ASML Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, November 6th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, October 29th were issued a dividend of $1.857 per share. This is a boost from ASML’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.86. This represents a $7.43 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, October 29th. ASML’s payout ratio is 25.80%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On ASML

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Fisher Asset Management LLC increased its position in shares of ASML by 2.6% in the third quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 4,352,596 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $4,213,705,000 after purchasing an additional 108,342 shares during the period. Capital International Investors boosted its position in shares of ASML by 17.3% during the 3rd quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 3,919,154 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $3,791,982,000 after acquiring an additional 577,448 shares in the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp raised its position in ASML by 16.6% during the third quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 2,148,506 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $2,079,948,000 after purchasing an additional 305,435 shares in the last quarter. WCM Investment Management LLC lifted its stake in ASML by 24.9% during the third quarter. WCM Investment Management LLC now owns 1,933,748 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $1,861,445,000 after purchasing an additional 385,502 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE boosted its holdings in shares of ASML by 8.3% in the 3rd quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 1,865,254 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $1,805,733,000 after purchasing an additional 142,763 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 26.07% of the company’s stock.

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.