ASML (NASDAQ:ASML) Shares Down 13.1% – Here’s Why

ASML Holding (NASDAQ:ASML) shares fell 13.1% during trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as low as $742.78 and last traded at $757.60. 1,749,829 shares changed hands during trading, an increase of 40% from the average session volume of 1,252,310 shares. The stock had previously closed at $872.27.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. UBS Group downgraded ASML from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 4th. Barclays raised shares of ASML from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 30th. Susquehanna reduced their target price on shares of ASML from $1,300.00 to $1,100.00 and set a “positive” rating for the company in a report on Friday. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on ASML from $1,185.00 to $1,000.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, October 3rd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on ASML from $1,202.00 to $1,207.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, ASML presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $1,071.80.

ASML Trading Down 17.1 %

The company has a current ratio of 1.52, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31. The firm has a market capitalization of $285.45 billion, a PE ratio of 38.69, a P/E/G ratio of 2.08 and a beta of 1.48. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $846.01 and a 200-day moving average price of $923.22.

ASML (NASDAQ:ASML) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 17th. The semiconductor company reported $4.01 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.87 by $0.14. ASML had a net margin of 26.50% and a return on equity of 49.93%. The business had revenue of $6.24 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $5.37 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 9.5% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts expect that ASML Holding will post 20.38 earnings per share for the current year.

ASML Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, August 7th. Stockholders of record on Monday, July 29th were given a dividend of $1.8732 per share. This represents a $7.49 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.04%. This is an increase from ASML’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.34. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, July 29th. ASML’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 28.50%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On ASML

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of ASML. Jennison Associates LLC increased its position in shares of ASML by 50.0% in the first quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 1,719,153 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $1,668,386,000 after buying an additional 572,996 shares in the last quarter. GQG Partners LLC raised its position in ASML by 21.6% during the first quarter. GQG Partners LLC now owns 1,657,878 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $1,608,921,000 after acquiring an additional 294,784 shares during the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp lifted its holdings in shares of ASML by 15.4% in the second quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 1,282,396 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $1,311,545,000 after purchasing an additional 170,992 shares in the last quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC grew its position in shares of ASML by 18.9% in the first quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 1,220,210 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $1,184,173,000 after purchasing an additional 194,357 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV increased its stake in shares of ASML by 4,379.6% during the 2nd quarter. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV now owns 889,875 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $910,102,000 after purchasing an additional 870,010 shares in the last quarter. 26.07% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.