Phraction Management LLC Buys Shares of 1,540 ASML Holding (NASDAQ:ASML)

Phraction Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of ASML Holding (NASDAQ:ASML) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 1,540 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,067,000.

Other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. CWM LLC grew its position in shares of ASML by 5.4% during the third quarter. CWM LLC now owns 2,044 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $1,703,000 after acquiring an additional 105 shares during the last quarter. Procyon Advisors LLC grew its position in ASML by 18.3% in the 3rd quarter. Procyon Advisors LLC now owns 763 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $636,000 after buying an additional 118 shares during the last quarter. Creative Planning grew its position in ASML by 2.6% in the 3rd quarter. Creative Planning now owns 26,866 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $22,386,000 after buying an additional 669 shares during the last quarter. NBC Securities Inc. grew its position in ASML by 38.1% in the 3rd quarter. NBC Securities Inc. now owns 116 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $96,000 after buying an additional 32 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Foster Victor Wealth Advisors LLC grew its position in ASML by 6.2% in the 3rd quarter. Foster Victor Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 359 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $304,000 after buying an additional 21 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 26.07% of the company’s stock.

ASML Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:ASML opened at $756.17 on Thursday. ASML Holding has a twelve month low of $645.45 and a twelve month high of $1,110.09. The firm has a market cap of $297.49 billion, a PE ratio of 36.35, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.63 and a beta of 1.47. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20, a quick ratio of 0.99 and a current ratio of 1.53. The business has a fifty day moving average of $726.48 and a 200-day moving average of $764.28.

ASML (NASDAQ:ASML) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The semiconductor company reported $7.30 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $7.67 by ($0.37). ASML had a net margin of 26.78% and a return on equity of 47.73%. On average, equities research analysts predict that ASML Holding will post 25.17 EPS for the current fiscal year.

ASML Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, February 19th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 11th will be issued a dividend of $1.5855 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, February 11th. This is a positive change from ASML’s previous dividend of $1.08. ASML’s payout ratio is presently 26.83%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have commented on the company. Sanford C. Bernstein reduced their target price on ASML from $815.00 to $767.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, November 29th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of ASML from $790.00 to $860.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, January 13th. BNP Paribas assumed coverage on shares of ASML in a report on Tuesday, December 3rd. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $858.00 price target on the stock. DZ Bank upgraded shares of ASML from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on shares of ASML from $1,148.00 to $1,100.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $937.00.

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.