Polen Capital Management LLC Sells 9,464 Shares of ASML Holding N.V. (NASDAQ:ASML)

Key Points

• Polen Capital Management LLC has reduced its stake in ASML Holding N.V. by 15.2%, owning 52,677 shares worth approximately $34.9 million after selling 9,464 shares.
• ASML reported a quarterly earnings per share (EPS) of $4.55, which was below analysts' consensus estimate of $5.94, but its revenue grew 23.2% year-over-year to $8.94 billion.
• The company has increased its quarterly dividend to $1.856 per share, reflecting an annual yield of 1.0%, up from its previous dividend of $1.64.

Polen Capital Management LLC trimmed its holdings in ASML Holding N.V. (NASDAQ:ASML - Free Report) by 15.2% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 52,677 shares of the semiconductor company's stock after selling 9,464 shares during the period. Polen Capital Management LLC's holdings in ASML were worth $34,905,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Norinchukin Bank The grew its position in ASML by 1.8% during the fourth quarter. Norinchukin Bank The now owns 857 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $594,000 after buying an additional 15 shares in the last quarter. Coppell Advisory Solutions LLC grew its position in ASML by 18.5% during the fourth quarter. Coppell Advisory Solutions LLC now owns 96 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $67,000 after buying an additional 15 shares in the last quarter. Sage Mountain Advisors LLC grew its position in ASML by 2.6% during the first quarter. Sage Mountain Advisors LLC now owns 602 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $399,000 after buying an additional 15 shares in the last quarter. Manchester Capital Management LLC grew its position in ASML by 15.2% during the first quarter. Manchester Capital Management LLC now owns 114 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $76,000 after buying an additional 15 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Nilsine Partners LLC grew its position in ASML by 2.6% during the first quarter. Nilsine Partners LLC now owns 631 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $418,000 after buying an additional 16 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 26.07% of the company's stock.

ASML Price Performance

ASML stock traded down $1.01 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $721.31. 1,178,815 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,750,960. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21, a current ratio of 1.43 and a quick ratio of 0.81. The company has a market capitalization of $283.78 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.10, a P/E/G ratio of 1.47 and a beta of 1.76. ASML Holding N.V. has a 52-week low of $578.51 and a 52-week high of $945.05. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $758.31 and a 200-day moving average price of $724.37.

ASML (NASDAQ:ASML - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 16th. The semiconductor company reported $4.55 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $5.94 by ($1.39). ASML had a return on equity of 49.47% and a net margin of 26.95%. The business had revenue of $8.94 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $8.72 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $4.01 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 23.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts anticipate that ASML Holding N.V. will post 25.17 earnings per share for the current year.

ASML Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, August 6th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, July 29th were given a $1.856 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, July 29th. This is an increase from ASML's previous quarterly dividend of $1.64. This represents a $7.42 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.0%. ASML's dividend payout ratio is presently 26.17%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on ASML shares. Jefferies Financial Group cut shares of ASML from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, June 26th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of ASML from $840.00 to $890.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 8th. 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 target price on the stock. Barclays reissued an "equal weight" rating on shares of ASML in a report on Tuesday, June 3rd. Finally, New Street Research upgraded shares of ASML from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, July 24th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $923.80.

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.