Entropy Technologies LP Makes New Investment in ASML Holding (NASDAQ:ASML)

Entropy Technologies LP purchased a new position in shares of ASML Holding (NASDAQ:ASML) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 3,800 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,634,000.

A number of other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Carnegie Investment Counsel raised its position in shares of ASML by 68.9% in the 4th quarter. Carnegie Investment Counsel now owns 2,128 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $1,475,000 after buying an additional 868 shares during the period. Central Pacific Bank Trust Division purchased a new position in shares of ASML in the 4th quarter worth $1,174,000. Taurus Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of ASML in the 3rd quarter worth $16,994,000. State Street Corp raised its position in shares of ASML by 5.2% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 140,802 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $117,323,000 after buying an additional 7,010 shares during the period. Finally, Stockman Wealth Management Inc. raised its position in shares of ASML by 7.2% in the 3rd quarter. Stockman Wealth Management Inc. now owns 15,361 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $12,800,000 after buying an additional 1,032 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 26.07% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

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

ASML Stock Down 1.5 %

Shares of ASML stock opened at $727.70 on Friday. The business has a 50-day moving average of $725.13 and a 200-day moving average of $767.97. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20, a current ratio of 1.53 and a quick ratio of 0.99. The company has a market capitalization of $286.29 billion, a PE ratio of 34.99, a P/E/G ratio of 1.63 and a beta of 1.47. ASML Holding has a 1-year low of $645.45 and a 1-year high of $1,110.09.

ASML (NASDAQ:ASML) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The semiconductor company reported $7.30 earnings per share 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, equities analysts forecast that ASML Holding will post 25.17 EPS for the current fiscal year.

ASML Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, February 19th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 11th will be paid a $1.5855 dividend. This is an increase from ASML’s previous dividend of $1.08. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, February 11th. ASML’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 26.83%.

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.