ASML (NASDAQ:ASML) Shares Down 6.6% - Here's Why

Key Points

• ASML shares fell 6.6% to $1,565.90 in heavy trading, with volume 24% above the average session level. The decline left the stock below its 50-day moving average but near its 200-day average.
• Analyst sentiment remains broadly positive: ASML has a “Moderate Buy” consensus rating and an average price target of $2,079.12, despite Zacks Research recently downgrading the stock to “Hold.”
• ASML reported $14.71 in quarterly EPS on $13.27 billion in revenue and maintains strong profitability, but its quarterly dividend was reduced to $2.1077 per share, equivalent to a 0.5% annualized yield.

ASML Holding N.V. (NASDAQ:ASML - Get Free Report)'s share price fell 6.6% during trading on Friday. The company traded as low as $1,535.33 and last traded at $1,565.90. 2,160,542 shares were traded during trading, an increase of 24% from the average session volume of 1,738,848 shares. The stock had previously closed at $1,675.70.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on the company. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an "overweight" rating on shares of ASML in a report on Monday, September 14th. Royal Bank Of Canada reissued an "outperform" rating and set a $2,100.00 price target on shares of ASML in a research report on Wednesday, October 7th. Citigroup restated a "buy" rating on shares of ASML in a report on Thursday, October 15th. Zacks Research lowered ASML from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, July 3rd. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein increased their price objective on ASML from $1,971.00 to $2,623.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, July 6th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have issued a Buy rating, two have issued a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $2,079.12.

ASML Stock Down 6.6%

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09, a current ratio of 1.49 and a quick ratio of 1.01. The firm has a market cap of $603.53 billion, a P/E ratio of 38.55, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.69 and a beta of 1.77. The company's 50-day simple moving average is $1,708.40 and its 200 day simple moving average is $1,594.40.

ASML (NASDAQ:ASML - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Sunday, September 27th. The semiconductor company reported $14.71 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. The business had revenue of $13.27 billion during the quarter. ASML had a net margin of 34.10% and a return on equity of 64.24%. Research analysts anticipate that ASML Holding N.V. will post 46.54 EPS for the current fiscal year.

ASML Cuts Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 4th. Investors of record on Tuesday, October 27th will be paid a dividend of $2.1077 per share. This is a drop from ASML's previous quarterly dividend of $2.1507. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, October 27th. This represents a $8.43 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.5%. ASML's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 17.65%.

Institutional Trading of ASML

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Provenance Wealth Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of ASML by 4,659.7% in the 3rd quarter. Provenance Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 3,427 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $6,209,000 after buying an additional 3,355 shares during the period. Integrity Alliance LLC. increased its holdings in ASML by 46.4% in the third quarter. Integrity Alliance LLC. now owns 363 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $658,000 after buying an additional 115 shares during the last quarter. Integrity Advisory Solutions LLC boosted its holdings in shares of ASML by 40.0% in the 3rd quarter. Integrity Advisory Solutions LLC now owns 224 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $407,000 after buying an additional 64 shares in the last quarter. Summa Corp. increased its holdings in shares of ASML by 20.3% in the 3rd quarter. Summa Corp. now owns 160 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $290,000 after acquiring an additional 27 shares during the period. Finally, Gerber Kawasaki Wealth & Investment Management increased its stake in ASML by 4.9% in the 3rd quarter. Gerber Kawasaki Wealth & Investment Management now owns 4,123 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $7,471,000 after buying an additional 194 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 26.07% of the company's stock.

ASML Company Profile

ASML Holding N.V. is a Netherlands-based technology company that develops and manufactures advanced lithography systems used by semiconductor manufacturers to produce integrated circuits. Its equipment helps customers transfer intricate circuit patterns onto silicon wafers, a critical step in the production of processors, memory chips and other semiconductor devices.

ASML's product portfolio includes extreme ultraviolet (EUV) lithography systems, which support the production of the most advanced chips, as well as deep ultraviolet (DUV) lithography systems for a broad range of semiconductor applications.

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