ASML announced 2023Q4 and full-year financial results

Recently, ASML disclosed its financial report for the fourth quarter and the full year of 2023. In the final quarter of 2023, net sales reached 7.2 billion euros, with a gross margin of 51.4% and a net profit of 2 billion euros, slightly surpassing ASML’s projections. Net bookings for the quarter amounted to 9.2 billion euros, 5.6 billion euros of which stemmed from EUV systems. During this period, ASML did not purchase any shares under its 2022-2025 stock buyback plan. It was in this quarter that ASML delivered the industry’s first High-NA EUV lithography system to a customer.

For the entirety of 2023, ASML’s net sales were 27.6 billion euros, marking a 30% increase from 2022, with a gross margin of 51.3% and net profits of 7.8 billion euros. By the end of 2023, the backlog of orders totaled 39 billion euros, slightly below the 40.4 billion euros reported in the same period last year.

The total dividend for 2023 is 6.10 euros per ordinary share, a 5.2% increase from 2022. An interim dividend of 1.45 euros per ordinary share will be paid on February 14, 2024. Considering this interim dividend and the two interim dividends of 1.45 euros per ordinary share paid in 2023, the final dividend proposal to the shareholders’ meeting is 1.75 euros per ordinary share.

ASML expects net sales for the first quarter of 2024 to be between 5 billion euros and 5.5 billion euros, with a gross margin between 48% and 49%, research and development costs of approximately 1.07 billion euros, and SG&A costs of about 300 million euros. ASML’s CEO, Peter Wennick, noted that the semiconductor industry continues to navigate the bottom of the cycle, with customers uncertain about the recovery of the semiconductor market this year, though there are some positive signs. The robust orders in the fourth quarter support future demand. ASML remains cautious for 2024, anticipating revenues to be close to those of 2023.