Principle Wealth Partners LLC Increases Holdings in ASML Holding N.V. $ASML

Key Points

• Principle Wealth Partners LLC has increased its stake in ASML Holding N.V. by 14.8% during the 2nd quarter, now owning shares valued at approximately $3.3 million.
• Several major investors have also increased their positions in ASML, with Princeton Global Asset Management posting a 153.8% increase in their shares during the same quarter.
• ASML recently reported a quarterly earnings per share (EPS) of $6.41, exceeding expectations, and declared an increased quarterly dividend of $1.857, effective November 6th.

Principle Wealth Partners LLC grew its holdings in shares of ASML Holding N.V. (NASDAQ:ASML - Free Report) by 14.8% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 4,157 shares of the semiconductor company's stock after purchasing an additional 536 shares during the quarter. Principle Wealth Partners LLC's holdings in ASML were worth $3,331,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in ASML. Princeton Global Asset Management LLC increased its position in shares of ASML by 153.8% during the 2nd quarter. Princeton Global Asset Management LLC now owns 33 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 20 shares during the last quarter. Banque Cantonale Vaudoise bought a new position in shares of ASML during the 1st quarter worth $27,000. Maseco LLP bought a new position in shares of ASML during the 2nd quarter worth $32,000. Knuff & Co LLC bought a new position in shares of ASML during the 1st quarter worth $33,000. Finally, Costello Asset Management INC grew its stake in shares of ASML by 147.1% during the 2nd quarter. Costello Asset Management INC now owns 42 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $34,000 after acquiring an additional 25 shares during the period. 26.07% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently weighed in on ASML. HSBC reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of ASML in a research note on Friday, October 17th. UBS Group reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of ASML in a research note on Wednesday, October 15th. Barclays reiterated an "overweight" rating on shares of ASML in a research note on Tuesday, September 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of ASML in a research note on Wednesday, October 15th. Finally, DZ Bank reiterated a "neutral" rating on shares of ASML in a research note on Wednesday, October 15th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have assigned a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, ASML currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $1,051.60.

ASML Stock Performance

Shares of ASML opened at $1,011.57 on Thursday. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $881.48 and its 200 day simple moving average is $781.44. The stock has a market capitalization of $397.83 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 41.17, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 1.87. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a quick ratio of 0.70 and a current ratio of 1.31. ASML Holding N.V. has a 52-week low of $578.51 and a 52-week high of $1,059.00.

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

ASML Increases Dividend

The firm 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 $1.857 dividend. This represents a $7.43 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, October 29th. This is an increase from ASML's previous quarterly dividend of $1.86. ASML's payout ratio is 25.56%.

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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