Invesco Ltd. Cuts Stock Position in ASML Holding N.V. $ASML

Invesco Ltd. lessened its holdings in shares of ASML Holding N.V. (NASDAQ:ASML) by 4.2% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 700,654 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock after selling 30,617 shares during the quarter. Invesco Ltd. owned about 0.18% of ASML worth $561,497,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. acquired a new stake in ASML during the 1st quarter worth approximately $360,262,000. Amundi increased its position in shares of ASML by 91.6% during the first quarter. Amundi now owns 642,498 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $403,215,000 after acquiring an additional 307,214 shares during the period. First Manhattan CO. LLC. raised its stake in shares of ASML by 61.0% in the first quarter. First Manhattan CO. LLC. now owns 708,062 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $469,183,000 after acquiring an additional 268,172 shares in the last quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in ASML by 6.3% in the second quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 4,244,254 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $3,401,304,000 after purchasing an additional 250,934 shares during the period. Finally, Goldman Sachs Group Inc. grew its stake in ASML by 26.5% during the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 952,385 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $631,079,000 after purchasing an additional 199,740 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 26.07% of the company’s stock.

ASML Stock Performance

Shares of ASML stock opened at $1,110.08 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.70, a current ratio of 1.31 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14. ASML Holding N.V. has a 52 week low of $578.51 and a 52 week high of $1,141.72. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $1,025.81 and its two-hundred day moving average is $860.55. The firm has a market capitalization of $436.57 billion, a P/E ratio of 45.18, a P/E/G ratio of 1.88 and a beta of 1.87.

ASML (NASDAQ:ASML) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, October 15th. The semiconductor company reported $6.41 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $6.27 by $0.14. The business had revenue of $8.80 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $8.99 billion. ASML had a net margin of 27.08% and a return on equity of 47.74%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up .7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business 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 company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, November 6th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, October 29th were issued a dividend of $1.857 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, October 29th. This is a positive change from ASML’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.86. This represents a $7.43 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.7%. ASML’s dividend payout ratio is 25.80%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on ASML shares. HSBC reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of ASML in a research report on Friday, October 17th. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of ASML in a report on Friday, October 10th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of ASML from $1,105.00 to $1,140.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 16th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reissued a “buy” rating on shares of ASML in a research report on Thursday, October 16th. Finally, Rothschild Redb raised shares of ASML from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, November 7th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have given a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, ASML presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $1,171.83.

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.