Challenger Wealth Management Makes New Investment in ASML Holding (NASDAQ:ASML)

Challenger Wealth Management bought a new stake in shares of ASML Holding (NASDAQ:ASML - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm bought 1,156 shares of the semiconductor company's stock, valued at approximately $801,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Edgewood Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of ASML by 43.1% during the fourth quarter. Edgewood Management LLC now owns 3,186,667 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $2,208,615,000 after buying an additional 959,696 shares during the last quarter. Amundi grew its holdings in shares of ASML by 4,880.5% during the fourth quarter. Amundi now owns 335,284 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $247,019,000 after buying an additional 328,552 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its holdings in shares of ASML by 53.4% during the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 807,257 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $559,494,000 after buying an additional 281,156 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of ASML during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $175,257,000. Finally, Fisher Funds Management LTD purchased a new stake in shares of ASML during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $137,386,000. Institutional investors own 26.07% of the company's stock.

ASML Stock Performance

ASML stock traded down $10.28 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $746.51. 1,237,543 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,666,616. The firm has a market capitalization of $293.69 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.89, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.62 and a beta of 1.75. The business has a 50 day moving average of $686.88 and a two-hundred day moving average of $707.02. ASML Holding has a 12 month low of $578.51 and a 12 month high of $1,110.09. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20, a current ratio of 1.53 and a quick ratio of 0.99.

ASML (NASDAQ:ASML - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 16th. The semiconductor company reported $6.31 earnings per share for the quarter, beating 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 the consensus estimate of $7.90 billion. As a group, research analysts predict that ASML Holding will post 25.17 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on ASML shares. DZ Bank upgraded shares of ASML from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Citigroup reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of ASML in a report on Monday, May 19th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on shares of ASML from $860.00 to $840.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 17th. 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. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on shares of ASML from $1,148.00 to $1,100.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, ASML presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $906.00.

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.