ASML Holding (NASDAQ:ASML) Short Interest Update

ASML Holding (NASDAQ:ASML) saw a significant growth in short interest in the month of April. As of April 15th, there was short interest totalling 987,700 shares, a growth of 30.1% from the March 31st total of 759,400 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 1,300,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 0.8 days. Approximately 0.3% of the company’s shares are short sold.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on ASML. Kepler Capital Markets upgraded ASML from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, January 8th. Evercore ISI assumed coverage on shares of ASML in a research note on Tuesday, April 16th. They issued an “outperform” rating on the stock. Cantor Fitzgerald assumed coverage on shares of ASML in a research report on Tuesday, January 23rd. They set an “overweight” rating for the company. Redburn Atlantic raised ASML from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 20th. Finally, Raymond James raised their price target on ASML from $850.00 to $1,000.00 and gave the stock a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 25th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, ASML has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $1,036.00.

ASML Stock Up 2.0 %

Shares of ASML stock traded up $18.32 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $918.97. 865,078 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,204,430. The firm has a market cap of $362.62 billion, a PE ratio of 46.93, a PEG ratio of 2.25 and a beta of 1.48. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $955.61 and its 200 day moving average is $804.52. ASML has a 1 year low of $563.99 and a 1 year high of $1,056.34. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a current ratio of 1.54.

ASML (NASDAQ:ASML) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 24th. The semiconductor company reported $5.60 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $5.12 by $0.48. The company had revenue of $7.79 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.34 billion. ASML had a return on equity of 56.99% and a net margin of 27.23%. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that ASML will post 20.04 earnings per share for the current year.

ASML Cuts Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, May 7th. Shareholders of record on Monday, April 29th will be given a $1.343 dividend. This represents a $5.37 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.58%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 26th. ASML’s dividend payout ratio is presently 27.02%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On ASML

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Private Trust Co. NA boosted its position in shares of ASML by 49.3% during the 3rd quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 515 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $303,000 after acquiring an additional 170 shares in the last quarter. Aaron Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in ASML by 12.9% in the third quarter. Aaron Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 690 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $406,000 after purchasing an additional 79 shares in the last quarter. Ballentine Partners LLC increased its stake in ASML by 2.4% in the third quarter. Ballentine Partners LLC now owns 2,161 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $1,272,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares during the last quarter. Ropes Wealth Advisors LLC raised its holdings in ASML by 3.4% during the third quarter. Ropes Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,143 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $673,000 after purchasing an additional 38 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Solidarity Wealth LLC lifted its position in shares of ASML by 114.9% during the 3rd quarter. Solidarity Wealth LLC now owns 7,650 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $4,503,000 after buying an additional 4,090 shares during the last quarter. 26.07% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.