Cozad Asset Management Inc. Sells 4,695 Shares of ASML Holding N.V. (NASDAQ:ASML)

Cozad Asset Management Inc. cut its stake in shares of ASML Holding N.V. (NASDAQ:ASML - Free Report) by 67.6% during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 2,253 shares of the semiconductor company's stock after selling 4,695 shares during the period. Cozad Asset Management Inc.'s holdings in ASML were worth $1,493,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of ASML. Putney Financial Group LLC raised its position in ASML by 322.2% during the first quarter. Putney Financial Group LLC now owns 38 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 29 shares during the period. Wayfinding Financial LLC acquired a new position in ASML in the 1st quarter worth about $35,000. Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. acquired a new position in ASML in the 1st quarter worth about $42,000. Olde Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in ASML in the 1st quarter worth about $42,000. Finally, Alpine Bank Wealth Management acquired a new position in ASML in the 1st quarter worth about $43,000. 26.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

ASML Stock Performance

NASDAQ:ASML traded down $4.89 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $689.82. 1,621,502 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,771,995. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $763.17 and a two-hundred day moving average of $726.77. ASML Holding N.V. has a 12 month low of $578.51 and a 12 month high of $945.05. The firm has a market capitalization of $271.39 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.79, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.46 and a beta of 1.73. The company has a current ratio of 1.43, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21.

ASML (NASDAQ:ASML - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, July 16th. The semiconductor company reported $4.55 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $5.94 by ($1.39). ASML had a net margin of 26.95% and a return on equity of 49.47%. The business had revenue of $8.94 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.72 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $4.01 EPS. ASML's revenue for the quarter was up 23.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts forecast that ASML Holding N.V. will post 25.17 earnings per share for the current fiscal 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 given a $1.856 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, July 29th. This represents a $7.42 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.1%. This is an increase from ASML's previous quarterly dividend of $1.64. ASML's dividend payout ratio is 26.17%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ASML has been the topic of several research reports. Citigroup reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of ASML in a research report on Monday, May 19th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on ASML from $840.00 to $890.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 8th. Sanford C. Bernstein initiated coverage on ASML in a report on Tuesday, June 17th. They set a "market perform" rating and a $806.00 price objective on the stock. DZ Bank lowered ASML from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 16th. Finally, Barclays reissued an "equal weight" rating on shares of ASML in a report on Tuesday, June 3rd. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $923.80.

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.