Evercore ISI Begins Coverage on ASML (NASDAQ:ASML)

Evercore ISI started coverage on shares of ASML (NASDAQ:ASML) in a research note issued to investors on Tuesday, MarketBeat reports. The brokerage issued an outperform rating on the semiconductor company’s stock.

Several other analysts have also recently commented on ASML. Raymond James boosted their price target on shares of ASML from $850.00 to $1,000.00 and gave the stock a strong-buy rating in a research note on Thursday, January 25th. Sanford C. Bernstein decreased their price target on shares of ASML from $1,072.00 to $1,052.00 and set an outperform rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, April 12th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on shares of ASML from $1,050.00 to $1,150.00 and gave the stock an overweight rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 2nd. Susquehanna boosted their price target on shares of ASML from $830.00 to $1,100.00 and gave the stock a positive rating in a research note on Friday, January 26th. Finally, Redburn Atlantic upgraded shares of ASML from a sell rating to a neutral rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 20th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average price target of $1,036.00.

ASML Trading Down 3.3 %

Shares of ASML stock opened at $859.54 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $339.17 billion, a P/E ratio of 43.90, a P/E/G ratio of 2.20 and a beta of 1.48. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34, a quick ratio of 0.96 and a current ratio of 1.50. The company has a fifty day moving average of $958.18 and a 200 day moving average of $793.71. ASML has a fifty-two week low of $563.99 and a fifty-two week high of $1,056.34.

ASML (NASDAQ:ASML) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, January 24th. The semiconductor company reported $5.60 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $5.12 by $0.48. The company had revenue of $7.79 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.34 billion. ASML had a net margin of 27.23% and a return on equity of 59.10%. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that ASML will post 20.4 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

ASML Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, May 7th. Stockholders of record on Monday, April 29th will be given a dividend of $1.343 per share. This represents a $5.37 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.62%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 26th. ASML’s dividend payout ratio is 27.02%.

Institutional Trading of ASML

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in ASML. Carmel Capital Partners LLC raised its position in ASML by 200.0% in the 3rd quarter. Carmel Capital Partners LLC now owns 45 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 30 shares during the period. Addison Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of ASML by 220.0% during the third quarter. Addison Advisors LLC now owns 48 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $28,000 after acquiring an additional 33 shares during the period. WD Rutherford LLC bought a new stake in shares of ASML during the first quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Beaird Harris Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of ASML in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Finally, Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV increased its holdings in ASML by 48.4% during the 4th quarter. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV now owns 46 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 15 shares during the period. 26.07% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.