ASML Holding (NASDAQ:ASML) Shares Sold by King Luther Capital Management Corp

King Luther Capital Management Corp decreased its position in shares of ASML Holding (NASDAQ:ASML) by 15.6% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 946 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock after selling 175 shares during the quarter. King Luther Capital Management Corp’s holdings in ASML were worth $656,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the business. Dearborn Partners LLC purchased a new stake in ASML during the fourth quarter worth $230,000. Davis R M Inc. boosted its stake in shares of ASML by 0.7% in the fourth quarter. Davis R M Inc. now owns 52,285 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $36,238,000 after acquiring an additional 348 shares during the last quarter. Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. increased its position in shares of ASML by 26.3% during the fourth quarter. Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 82,646 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $57,280,000 after purchasing an additional 17,187 shares in the last quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. raised its stake in ASML by 4.4% in the 4th quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 6,839 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $4,740,000 after purchasing an additional 286 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Simplicity Wealth LLC purchased a new position in shares of ASML in the fourth quarter worth about $245,000. 26.07% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

ASML Trading Down 1.2 %

NASDAQ:ASML opened at $694.59 on Friday. ASML Holding has a 12-month low of $645.45 and a 12-month high of $1,110.09. The firm has a market cap of $273.27 billion, a PE ratio of 33.39, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.62 and a beta of 1.54. The company has a current ratio of 1.53, a quick ratio of 0.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $733.02 and a 200 day moving average price of $742.04.

ASML (NASDAQ:ASML) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The semiconductor company reported $7.30 earnings per share (EPS) 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%. Sell-side analysts anticipate that ASML Holding will post 25.17 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

ASML Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, February 19th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 11th were issued a $1.5855 dividend. 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 dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 31.35%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on ASML shares. Sanford C. Bernstein lowered their price target on shares of ASML from $815.00 to $767.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, November 29th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on ASML from $790.00 to $860.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, January 13th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on ASML from $1,148.00 to $1,100.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. BNP Paribas began coverage on ASML in a report on Tuesday, December 3rd. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $858.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, DZ Bank raised ASML from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average 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.