ASML

Last edit: 2024-06-14

There was once a company called Philips, which for a time was one of the biggest producers of electronic devices. At one point they decided they needed a new company to produce machines for the creation of micro processors, which was a rising market at the time. Philips has mostly been pushed into obscurity, while ASML had become one of the most important companies in the world. The irony.

The machines build by this company are responsible for most if not all “modern” microchips.

The direction of ASML is clear, well at least for the board. The company has flat-out threatened the government of the Netherlands that if they are obstructed in their growth, be it in talent of physical room to expand, that they would look elsewhere. The government in turn seems to take these threats seriously as steps have been taken to keep one of the most important companies of the country to stay.

Being as their technology are incredibly cutting edge, few companies or even countries have been able to mirror it’s success. Not for a lack of trying, but simply because of the mind numbing complexity behind it all. When you head stories of some Russian or Chinese company cracking the code and being able to make a similar machine, then it’s always some older model that pales in comparison with newer models. Still the interests to compete with ASML are still there, so even with a lack of competition there will always remain a sense of it.

The company pays a quarterly dividends, which pales in comparison to the price of the stock itself. Far from a decent yield and safe dividend stock.