Synovus Financial Corp Grows Holdings in ASML Holding (NASDAQ:ASML)

Synovus Financial Corp raised its stake in ASML Holding (NASDAQ:ASML) by 44.6% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 687 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock after purchasing an additional 212 shares during the quarter. Synovus Financial Corp’s holdings in ASML were worth $477,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Edgewood Management LLC increased its stake in ASML by 43.1% in the fourth quarter. Edgewood Management LLC now owns 3,186,667 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $2,208,615,000 after acquiring an additional 959,696 shares during the last quarter. Amundi increased its position in shares of ASML by 4,880.5% during 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 last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its holdings in shares of ASML by 53.4% during the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 807,257 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $559,494,000 after buying an additional 281,156 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in shares of ASML during the 4th quarter valued at about $175,257,000. Finally, Fisher Funds Management LTD bought a new stake in ASML in the 4th quarter worth approximately $137,386,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 26.07% of the company’s stock.

ASML Price Performance

ASML stock opened at $640.16 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.53, a quick ratio of 0.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $699.77 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $714.73. The stock has a market capitalization of $251.85 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.78, a PEG ratio of 1.62 and a beta of 1.67. ASML Holding has a 12-month low of $578.51 and a 12-month high of $1,110.09.

ASML (NASDAQ:ASML) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 16th. The semiconductor company reported $6.31 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.12 by $0.19. The business had revenue of $8.77 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.90 billion. ASML had a return on equity of 47.73% and a net margin of 26.78%. As a group, equities analysts predict 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 will be paid on Tuesday, May 6th. Investors of record on Monday, April 28th will be issued a $1.5855 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, April 28th. This is a boost from ASML’s previous dividend of $1.08. ASML’s payout ratio is 31.35%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have commented on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on shares of ASML from $1,148.00 to $1,100.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. DZ Bank raised shares of ASML from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Susquehanna lowered their price target on shares of ASML from $1,100.00 to $965.00 and set a “positive” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on shares of ASML from $860.00 to $840.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $906.00.

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.