ASML (NASDAQ:ASML) Stock Price Down 1.6% - Should You Sell?

Key Points

• ASML's stock recently declined by 1.6%, trading at approximately $1,025.02 after reaching a low of $1,024.15 while experiencing a volume drop of 38% compared to the average.
• Analyst ratings for ASML are generally positive, with three analysts giving a Strong Buy rating and a consensus target price of $1,051.60, despite some ratings being as neutral as "hold."
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $1.857 per share, an increase from its previous payout, with a yield of 0.7% and a payout ratio of 25.56%.

ASML Holding N.V. (NASDAQ:ASML - Get Free Report) shares fell 1.6% during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as low as $1,024.15 and last traded at $1,025.02. 1,068,127 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 38% from the average session volume of 1,714,298 shares. The stock had previously closed at $1,042.15.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ASML has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Susquehanna lifted their price target on shares of ASML from $965.00 to $1,150.00 and gave the company a "positive" rating in a research report on Friday, October 10th. New Street Research reaffirmed a "neutral" rating on shares of ASML in a research report on Monday, October 6th. Morningstar lowered ASML to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, September 18th. Erste Group Bank upgraded ASML from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, September 22nd. Finally, Evercore ISI reaffirmed an "outperform" rating on shares of ASML in a research note on Thursday, October 16th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have issued a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $1,051.60.

ASML Stock Performance

The firm has a market capitalization of $403.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 41.72, a PEG ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 1.87. 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 firm has a 50 day moving average price of $870.70 and a 200-day moving average price of $778.13.

ASML (NASDAQ:ASML - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 15th. The semiconductor company reported $6.41 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $6.27 by $0.14. The company had revenue of $8.71 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.99 billion. ASML had a return on equity of 47.74% and a net margin of 27.08%.ASML's revenue was up .7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $5.28 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that ASML Holding N.V. will post 25.17 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

ASML Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, November 6th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, October 29th will be issued a dividend of $1.857 per share. This is a boost from ASML's previous quarterly dividend of $1.86. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, October 29th. This represents a $7.43 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.7%. ASML's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 25.56%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On ASML

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its holdings in ASML by 6.0% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,114 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $1,401,000 after buying an additional 119 shares during the last quarter. Nilsine Partners LLC increased its holdings in shares of ASML by 2.6% in the 1st quarter. Nilsine Partners LLC now owns 631 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $418,000 after acquiring an additional 16 shares during the last quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. raised its position in shares of ASML by 7.7% during the 1st quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. now owns 19,601 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $12,988,000 after acquiring an additional 1,394 shares in the last quarter. Hudson Value Partners LLC raised its position in shares of ASML by 10.0% during the 1st quarter. Hudson Value Partners LLC now owns 5,623 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $3,726,000 after acquiring an additional 511 shares in the last quarter. Finally, TrueMark Investments LLC purchased a new stake in ASML during the first quarter worth approximately $1,948,000. 26.07% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About ASML

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.

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