Pictet Asset Management Holding SA Sells 1,273 Shares of ASML Holding (NASDAQ:ASML)

Pictet Asset Management Holding SA cut its stake in ASML Holding (NASDAQ:ASML) by 8.4% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 13,869 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock after selling 1,273 shares during the period. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA’s holdings in ASML were worth $9,612,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of ASML. Van ECK Associates Corp raised its stake in ASML by 1.8% in the fourth quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 1,788,280 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $1,239,421,000 after buying an additional 31,231 shares in the last quarter. Windacre Partnership LLC raised its position in shares of ASML by 4.0% in the 3rd quarter. Windacre Partnership LLC now owns 664,100 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $553,361,000 after acquiring an additional 25,600 shares in the last quarter. Amundi lifted its stake in shares of ASML by 4,880.5% in the 4th quarter. Amundi now owns 335,284 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $247,019,000 after purchasing an additional 328,552 shares during the period. Stifel Financial Corp boosted its position in shares of ASML by 16.1% during the third quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 258,638 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $215,530,000 after purchasing an additional 35,926 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new position in ASML in the fourth quarter worth $175,257,000. 26.07% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

ASML Stock Performance

Shares of ASML opened at $669.01 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $263.20 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.16, a P/E/G ratio of 1.62 and a beta of 1.54. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $721.72 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $729.09. 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 released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The semiconductor company reported $7.30 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%. Research analysts anticipate that ASML Holding will post 25.17 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

ASML Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, May 6th. Investors of record on Monday, April 28th will be given a dividend of $1.5855 per share. This is an increase from ASML’s previous dividend of $1.08. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, April 28th. ASML’s dividend payout ratio is 31.35%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

ASML has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. 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. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on shares of ASML from $1,148.00 to $1,100.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, DZ Bank raised ASML from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Two 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. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus 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.