Sandy Spring Bank Increases Position in ASML Holding (NASDAQ:ASML)

Sandy Spring Bank grew its stake in ASML Holding (NASDAQ:ASML) by 26.5% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 7,202 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,507 shares during the period. Sandy Spring Bank’s holdings in ASML were worth $4,992,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Kennebec Savings Bank boosted its holdings in shares of ASML by 227.3% in the 4th quarter. Kennebec Savings Bank now owns 36 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 25 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Shields & Co. LLC boosted its holdings in shares of ASML by 740.0% in the 4th quarter. Wellington Shields & Co. LLC now owns 42 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 37 shares in the last quarter. Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of ASML in the 4th quarter valued at $31,000. Albion Financial Group UT boosted its holdings in shares of ASML by 133.3% in the 4th quarter. Albion Financial Group UT now owns 56 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $39,000 after buying an additional 32 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Roxbury Financial LLC acquired a new position in shares of ASML in the 4th quarter valued at $39,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 26.07% of the company’s stock.

ASML Stock Up 0.5 %

ASML stock opened at $734.91 on Thursday. ASML Holding has a one year low of $645.45 and a one year high of $1,110.09. The stock has a market capitalization of $289.13 billion, a PE ratio of 35.33, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.62 and a beta of 1.54. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20, a quick ratio of 0.99 and a current ratio of 1.53. The company has a fifty day moving average of $731.54 and a 200-day moving average of $736.45.

ASML (NASDAQ:ASML) last released its earnings results 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 return on equity of 47.73% and a net margin of 26.78%. As a group, analysts expect that ASML Holding will post 25.17 EPS for the current year.

ASML Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, February 19th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 11th were issued a $1.5855 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 11th. This is an increase from ASML’s previous dividend of $1.08. ASML’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 31.35%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on ASML. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on shares of 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 shares of ASML from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on shares of 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. Sanford C. Bernstein decreased their price target on shares of ASML from $815.00 to $767.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, November 29th. Finally, BNP Paribas began coverage on shares of ASML in a research note on Tuesday, December 3rd. They set an “outperform” rating and a $858.00 price target for the company. Two 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 company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $937.00.

ASML 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.