AFT Forsyth & Company Inc. Sells 15 Shares of ASML Holding (NASDAQ:ASML)

AFT Forsyth & Company Inc. cut its position in ASML Holding (NASDAQ:ASML) by 1.5% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 1,013 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock after selling 15 shares during the period. AFT Forsyth & Company Inc.’s holdings in ASML were worth $702,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Fairway Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in ASML in the third quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Kennebec Savings Bank lifted its holdings in shares of ASML by 227.3% in the 4th quarter. Kennebec Savings Bank now owns 36 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 25 shares in the last quarter. Milestone Investment Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in ASML in the 3rd quarter valued at $28,000. Fortitude Family Office LLC increased its stake in ASML by 46.9% during the 3rd quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 47 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $39,000 after purchasing an additional 15 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Albion Financial Group UT raised its holdings in ASML by 133.3% during the fourth quarter. Albion Financial Group UT now owns 56 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $39,000 after buying an additional 32 shares during the last quarter. 26.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

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

ASML Stock Performance

Shares of ASML opened at $756.17 on Thursday. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $726.48 and a 200 day moving average of $764.28. The company has a market capitalization of $297.49 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.35, a PEG ratio of 1.63 and a beta of 1.47. ASML Holding has a 12 month low of $645.45 and a 12 month high of $1,110.09. The company has a current ratio of 1.53, a quick ratio of 0.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20.

ASML (NASDAQ:ASML) last announced its earnings results 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%. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that ASML Holding will post 25.17 earnings per share for the current year.

ASML Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, February 19th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 11th will be given a $1.5855 dividend. This is a positive change from ASML’s previous dividend of $1.08. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, February 11th. ASML’s payout ratio is currently 26.83%.

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.