ASML (NASDAQ:ASML) Shares Gap Down - Should You Sell?

ASML Holding N.V. (NASDAQ:ASML - Get Free Report)'s stock price gapped down prior to trading on Wednesday . The stock had previously closed at $823.02, but opened at $754.36. ASML shares last traded at $735.43, with a volume of 3,171,508 shares traded.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages recently weighed in on ASML. Susquehanna cut 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. Citigroup reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of ASML in a report on Monday, May 19th. Barclays reiterated an "equal weight" rating on shares of ASML in a report on Tuesday, June 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on ASML from $840.00 to $890.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 8th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein began coverage on ASML in a research report on Tuesday, June 17th. They issued a "market perform" rating and a $806.00 price objective on the stock. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $923.80.

ASML Stock Down 0.9%

The stock has a market cap of $290.51 billion, a PE ratio of 30.81, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.58 and a beta of 1.73. The company has a current ratio of 1.52, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $769.05 and a 200-day moving average price of $727.48.

ASML (NASDAQ:ASML - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, July 16th. The semiconductor company reported $4.55 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $5.94 by ($1.39). ASML had a net margin of 26.95% and a return on equity of 50.31%. The business had revenue of $8.94 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $8.72 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $4.01 EPS. The company's quarterly revenue was up 23.2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts forecast that ASML Holding N.V. will post 25.17 earnings per share for the current year.

ASML Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 6th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, July 29th will be issued a $1.856 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, July 29th. This represents a $7.42 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.01%. This is a positive change from ASML's previous quarterly dividend of $1.64. ASML's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 29.96%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its stake in shares of ASML by 70,115.5% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,400,800 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $9,282,120,000 after acquiring an additional 1,398,805 shares during the last quarter. Edgewood Management LLC grew its position in ASML by 43.1% in the 4th quarter. Edgewood Management LLC now owns 3,186,667 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $2,208,615,000 after acquiring an additional 959,696 shares in the last quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. acquired a new position in ASML in the 1st quarter valued at about $360,262,000. Invesco Ltd. grew its position in ASML by 101.0% in the 1st quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 731,271 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $484,562,000 after acquiring an additional 367,505 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Amundi boosted its stake in shares of ASML by 91.6% in the 1st quarter. Amundi now owns 642,498 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $403,215,000 after buying an additional 307,214 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other 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.