Meridian Wealth Management LLC Cuts Stock Holdings in ASML Holding (NASDAQ:ASML)

Meridian Wealth Management LLC reduced its position in shares of ASML Holding (NASDAQ:ASML) by 17.8% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 821 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock after selling 178 shares during the period. Meridian Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in ASML were worth $569,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in ASML. Fisher Funds Management LTD purchased a new position in ASML during the fourth quarter worth about $137,386,000. SG Americas Securities LLC raised its holdings in ASML by 281.3% during the fourth quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 156,693 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $108,601,000 after purchasing an additional 115,603 shares in the last quarter. Westfield Capital Management Co. LP raised its holdings in ASML by 126.4% during the third quarter. Westfield Capital Management Co. LP now owns 148,377 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $123,635,000 after purchasing an additional 82,836 shares in the last quarter. Empirical Asset Management LLC grew its position in ASML by 2,825.3% during the fourth quarter. Empirical Asset Management LLC now owns 84,191 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $58,351,000 after buying an additional 81,313 shares during the period. Finally, Edgewood Management LLC grew its position in ASML by 3.3% during the third quarter. Edgewood Management LLC now owns 2,226,971 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $1,855,624,000 after buying an additional 70,776 shares during the period. 26.07% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

ASML Stock Up 4.5 %

Shares of NASDAQ ASML opened at $739.75 on Thursday. ASML Holding has a 1 year low of $645.45 and a 1 year high of $1,110.09. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $732.90 and its 200 day moving average price is $750.03. The firm has a market cap of $291.03 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.56, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.62 and a beta of 1.54. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20, a quick ratio of 0.99 and a current ratio of 1.53.

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 analysts’ consensus estimates of $7.67 by ($0.37). ASML had a return on equity of 47.73% and a net margin of 26.78%. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that ASML Holding will post 25.17 earnings per share for the current year.

ASML Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, February 19th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 11th were paid a dividend of $1.5855 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 11th. This is an increase from ASML’s previous dividend of $1.08. ASML’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 31.35%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have weighed in on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on shares of 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. DZ Bank upgraded shares of ASML from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Sanford C. Bernstein lowered their target price 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 upped 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. Finally, BNP Paribas started coverage on shares of ASML in a research report on Tuesday, December 3rd. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $858.00 price target on the stock. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, ASML has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $937.00.

ASML 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.