Meritage Portfolio Management Has $21.76 Million Stake in ASML Holding (NASDAQ:ASML)

Meritage Portfolio Management boosted its position in shares of ASML Holding (NASDAQ:ASML) by 6.7% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 28,742 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock after buying an additional 1,816 shares during the period. ASML comprises about 1.4% of Meritage Portfolio Management’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 10th largest holding. Meritage Portfolio Management’s holdings in ASML were worth $21,756,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Townsquare Capital LLC increased its stake in shares of ASML by 11.5% during the third quarter. Townsquare Capital LLC now owns 8,516 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $5,013,000 after buying an additional 881 shares during the period. Savoie Capital LLC purchased a new position in ASML during the 3rd quarter valued at about $14,658,000. International Assets Investment Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of ASML by 48,040.7% in the 4th quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 245,999 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $186,202,000 after purchasing an additional 245,488 shares in the last quarter. CenterBook Partners LP lifted its position in shares of ASML by 69.2% in the 3rd quarter. CenterBook Partners LP now owns 11,529 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $6,787,000 after purchasing an additional 4,716 shares during the period. Finally, Meitav Investment House Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of ASML by 219.0% during the fourth quarter. Meitav Investment House Ltd. now owns 3,158 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $2,195,000 after purchasing an additional 2,168 shares in the last quarter. 26.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

ASML Stock Performance

NASDAQ ASML traded up $20.15 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $921.05. The stock had a trading volume of 612,535 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,234,083. ASML Holding has a 52-week low of $563.99 and a 52-week high of $1,056.34. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $955.81 and a 200 day moving average of $802.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a current ratio of 1.54. The stock has a market cap of $363.44 billion, a P/E ratio of 46.91, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.22 and a beta of 1.48.

ASML (NASDAQ:ASML) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, January 24th. The semiconductor company reported $5.60 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $5.12 by $0.48. ASML had a net margin of 27.23% and a return on equity of 56.99%. The firm had revenue of $7.79 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.34 billion. Sell-side analysts predict that ASML Holding will post 20.04 earnings per share for the current year.

ASML Cuts Dividend

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ASML has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Sanford C. Bernstein reduced their price objective on shares of ASML from $1,072.00 to $1,052.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, April 12th. Cantor Fitzgerald initiated coverage on ASML in a research report on Tuesday, January 23rd. They issued an “overweight” rating for the company. Kepler Capital Markets raised ASML from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, January 8th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of ASML from $1,050.00 to $1,150.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 2nd. Finally, HSBC assumed coverage on shares of ASML in a report on Thursday, February 22nd. They issued a “buy” rating on the stock. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $1,036.00.

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.