ASML Holding (NASDAQ:ASML) Short Interest Update

ASML Holding (NASDAQ:ASML - Get Free Report) was the target of a large growth in short interest in April. As of April 15th, there was short interest totalling 2,440,000 shares, a growth of 26.4% from the March 31st total of 1,930,000 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 1,900,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 1.3 days. Approximately 0.6% of the shares of the stock are sold short.

Institutional Trading of ASML

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in ASML. Carnegie Investment Counsel increased its stake in ASML by 68.9% in the 4th quarter. Carnegie Investment Counsel now owns 2,128 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $1,475,000 after buying an additional 868 shares during the period. Central Pacific Bank Trust Division purchased a new position in shares of ASML during the fourth quarter worth approximately $1,174,000. Foundations Investment Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of ASML by 36.7% during the fourth quarter. Foundations Investment Advisors LLC now owns 26,322 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $18,243,000 after acquiring an additional 7,073 shares in the last quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp boosted its holdings in shares of ASML by 12.2% in the fourth quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 9,759 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $6,764,000 after purchasing an additional 1,062 shares during the period. Finally, Alpha Cubed Investments LLC grew its stake in ASML by 33.9% in the fourth quarter. Alpha Cubed Investments LLC now owns 81,564 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $56,530,000 after purchasing an additional 20,651 shares in the last quarter. 26.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have recently commented on the company. DZ Bank upgraded ASML from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on shares of ASML from $860.00 to $840.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 17th. Susquehanna reduced their price target on shares of ASML from $1,100.00 to $965.00 and set a "positive" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 17th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on shares of ASML from $1,148.00 to $1,100.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $906.00.

ASML Trading Up 3.5 %

ASML stock traded up $23.61 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $690.33. 1,214,696 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,642,546. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $680.84 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $702.40. The stock has a market capitalization of $271.59 billion, a PE ratio of 33.19, a PEG ratio of 1.62 and a beta of 1.67. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20, a quick ratio of 0.99 and a current ratio of 1.53. ASML has a one year low of $578.51 and a one year high of $1,110.09.

ASML (NASDAQ:ASML - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 16th. The semiconductor company reported $6.31 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $6.12 by $0.19. ASML had a net margin of 26.78% and a return on equity of 47.73%. The company had revenue of $8.77 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.90 billion. Equities research analysts expect that ASML will post 25.17 EPS for the current year.

ASML Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, May 6th. Shareholders of record on Monday, April 28th will be given a $1.6414 dividend. This represents a $6.57 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.95%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, April 28th. ASML's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 27.48%.

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.