ASML Holding (NASDAQ:ASML) Holdings Lowered by Agur Provident & Training Funds Management Ltd.

Agur Provident & Training Funds Management Ltd. lowered its stake in ASML Holding (NASDAQ:ASML) by 55.6% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 5,730 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock after selling 7,170 shares during the quarter. ASML makes up 1.5% of Agur Provident & Training Funds Management Ltd.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 16th largest holding. Agur Provident & Training Funds Management Ltd.’s holdings in ASML were worth $3,971,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Kennebec Savings Bank boosted its position in shares of ASML by 227.3% in the fourth quarter. Kennebec Savings Bank now owns 36 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 25 shares during the period. Wellington Shields & Co. LLC boosted its position in ASML by 740.0% during the 4th quarter. Wellington Shields & Co. LLC now owns 42 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 37 shares during the period. Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC purchased a new position in ASML during the 4th quarter valued at about $31,000. Albion Financial Group UT increased its holdings in shares of ASML by 133.3% in the 4th quarter. Albion Financial Group UT now owns 56 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $39,000 after purchasing an additional 32 shares during the period. Finally, Roxbury Financial LLC purchased a new stake in shares of ASML in the fourth quarter worth approximately $39,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 26.07% of the company’s stock.

ASML Stock Down 2.1 %

Shares of ASML stock opened at $690.63 on Friday. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $729.10 and its 200 day simple moving average is $732.67. ASML Holding has a twelve month low of $645.45 and a twelve month high of $1,110.09. 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 company has a market capitalization of $271.71 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.20, a PEG ratio of 1.62 and a beta of 1.54.

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

ASML Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, February 19th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 11th were given a dividend of $1.5855 per share. This is a positive change from ASML’s previous dividend of $1.08. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 11th. ASML’s payout ratio is currently 31.35%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

ASML has been the topic of several research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on shares of ASML from $1,148.00 to $1,100.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Sanford C. Bernstein cut their price objective on ASML from $815.00 to $767.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, November 29th. BNP Paribas initiated coverage on ASML in a research report on Tuesday, December 3rd. They set an “outperform” rating and a $858.00 price objective for the company. DZ Bank raised ASML from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on ASML from $790.00 to $860.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, January 13th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $937.00.

ASML Company Profile

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.