The Week

ASML ended the week down 1.08% at $1,679.92, while the S&P 500 slipped 0.08%, leaving the stock about 1 percentage point behind the benchmark. The trading range came to 6.82%. The week started soft: shares opened Monday at $1,594.21, touched a low of $1,572.84, and settled at $1,575.15. Tuesday and Wednesday brought a modest recovery to $1,591.48 and $1,602.22. Thursday closed at $1,629.67, and Friday saw a jump on higher volume, peaking at $1,681.61 before finishing at $1,679.92, just below the 20-day moving average of $1,689.40. Daily turnover averaged 1.76m shares, about 24% above the median; Friday’s 2.53m shares was the busiest session of the week.

Key Events

Early in the week, Anthropic’s call for a slower pace of AI development sent chip names lower. ASML traded down more than 5% in pre-market on 14 September and briefly fell close to 7% intraday. At the same time, analysts noted that growing customer adoption of High NA technology is reinforcing ASML’s leadership in chip manufacturing. J.P. Morgan reiterated its buy rating on Monday and said the company is studying how to produce more than 110 EUV tools in 2028. By Tuesday’s pre-market, confidence around AI-driven fab construction and the 2028 EUV capacity plan pushed ASML shares up more than 3%. Bank of America Securities also kept a buy rating midweek. Later, attention turned to the competitive picture: Canon and Nikon were reported to be working on moves the market has overlooked, while Intel put High NA EUV into production, though stitching still needs validation.

Analyst Ratings

Among 45 institutions covering ASML, 31 rate it buy, 7 overweight, 3 hold, 1 sell, and 3 have no opinion. The consensus rating is strong buy, with a consensus target of $2,148.49, about 27.89% above the latest close. The target range is wide, from a low of $893.45 to a high of $2,860.98, pointing to meaningful disagreement among analysts. Within the semiconductor materials and equipment industry, ASML ranks first out of 30 companies on analyst ratings.

The Week Ahead

The coming week brings U.S. macro data including the Richmond Fed composite index, weekly EIA crude inventories, initial jobless claims, and new home sales, offering context on rates and demand. ASML has no earnings due soon; its Q3 fiscal 2026 results are scheduled for 14 October before the market, with estimates at $12.266 EPS and $13.5bn revenue. The debate around the 2028 EUV capacity plan and High NA yields may also resurface in industry comments or customer guidance.

In Short

ASML moved lower early and recovered late in the week, ending marginally down but holding near its 20-day moving average, at roughly 52x P/E and 26x P/B. The analyst picture is constructive: the consensus is strong buy and the target sits well above spot, though the wide target range signals divided views. On the latest trading day, large lots turned net buyer while small and medium lots were net sellers. The key item to watch is the balance between AI capex momentum and the pace at which EUV capacity and High NA adoption translate into orders.

This article is generated by LongbridgeAI from market data, for information only and not investment advice.