ASML initiated with a Market Perform at Bernstein

Bernstein initiated coverage of ASML (ASML) with a Market Perform rating and $806 price target The firm initiated the European semiconductor sector with the view that advanced packaging and new material adoption will drive semiconductor performance improvement going forward. Lithography and traditional feature-shrinking, on the other hand, are seeing diminishing returns despite being the major performance driver for decades, the analyst tells investors in a research note. Bernstein says that while ASML’s dominance in extreme ultraviolet lithography is undisputed, the space is taking up too much of leading edge logic capex with diminishing returns. Extreme ultraviolet capex intensity is likely to drop, the firm contends.