Lam Research (NASDAQ:LRCX) Stock Price Up 6.1% – Should You Buy?

Lam Research Corporation (NASDAQ:LRCX) shares shot up 6.1% during trading on Wednesday. The company traded as high as $241.60 and last traded at $235.88. 10,912,856 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 1% from the average session volume of 10,971,823 shares. The stock had previously closed at $222.39.

Key Stories Impacting Lam Research

Investors following LRCX have been watching these stories:

• Positive Sentiment: Lam’s previously announced authorization to repurchase up to $25 billion of shares may support shareholder returns and signal confidence, although buybacks do not remove the risks of business and share-price volatility. Share repurchase coverage
• Neutral Sentiment: Lam and LEGO Education announced a multiyear STEM-learning partnership backed by a $15 million Lam Foundation grant. It supports community education and future talent, but is not a near-term revenue driver. Lam and LEGO Education partnership
• Negative Sentiment: The immediate pressure appears tied to weakness across semiconductor-equipment peers Applied Materials and KLA. Benzinga linked the sector decline to news involving NVIDIA CEO Jensen Huang, suggesting Lam’s move reflects broader industry sentiment rather than a company-specific announcement. Benzinga coverage of Lam and sector moves

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on LRCX shares. Bank of America restated a “buy” rating and set a $345.00 target price on shares of Lam Research in a research note on Thursday, October 22nd. Citigroup reissued a “buy” rating and set a $435.00 price objective (down from $450.00) on shares of Lam Research in a report on Thursday, October 22nd. Zacks Research cut shares of Lam Research from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, October 22nd. HSBC restated a “hold” rating and set a $333.00 price objective on shares of Lam Research in a research report on Monday, July 27th. Finally, Deutsche Bank restated a “buy” rating and issued a $375.00 target price on shares of Lam Research in a report on Monday, October 19th. Twenty-six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $357.57.

Lam Research Price Performance

The firm has a market capitalization of $282.23 billion, a PE ratio of 33.79, a P/E/G ratio of 0.87 and a beta of 1.97. The company has a current ratio of 2.48, a quick ratio of 1.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $279.00 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $283.79.

Lam Research (NASDAQ:LRCX) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 21st. The semiconductor company reported $2.20 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.18 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $8.22 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.14 billion. Lam Research had a return on equity of 72.15% and a net margin of 32.34%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 54.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.26 EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that Lam Research Corporation will post 9.60 earnings per share for the current year.

Lam Research Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 6th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, December 2nd will be given a dividend of $0.33 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, December 2nd. This represents a $1.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.6%. Lam Research’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 19.67%.

Lam Research declared that its Board of Directors has approved a share repurchase plan on Thursday, November 5th that allows the company to buy back $25 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the semiconductor company to purchase up to 9% of its stock through open market purchases. Share repurchase plans are usually an indication that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling at Lam Research

In other Lam Research news, insider Ava Harter sold 5,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, August 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $302.46, for a total transaction of $1,512,300.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 42,462 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $12,843,056.52. This trade represents a 10.53% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director Bethany Mayer sold 9,557 shares of Lam Research stock in a transaction on Wednesday, September 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $314.74, for a total transaction of $3,007,970.18. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 20,995 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,607,966.30. This represents a 31.28% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last quarter, insiders sold 14,573 shares of company stock valued at $4,523,606. 0.31% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Lam Research

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. New World Advisors LLC increased its stake in Lam Research by 22.3% in the 3rd quarter. New World Advisors LLC now owns 1,643 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $540,000 after buying an additional 300 shares during the period. State Board of Administration of Florida Retirement System boosted its holdings in shares of Lam Research by 7.8% in the third quarter. State Board of Administration of Florida Retirement System now owns 1,157,656 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $380,302,000 after acquiring an additional 84,056 shares in the last quarter. 49 Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Lam Research during the third quarter worth about $933,000. Dock Street Asset Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of Lam Research by 899.8% during the third quarter. Dock Street Asset Management Inc. now owns 27,925 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $9,174,000 after acquiring an additional 25,132 shares during the period. Finally, Mosaic Family Wealth Partners LLC raised its holdings in Lam Research by 11.4% during the third quarter. Mosaic Family Wealth Partners LLC now owns 2,567 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $843,000 after purchasing an additional 263 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 84.61% of the company’s stock.

About Lam Research

Lam Research is a global supplier of equipment and services used to manufacture semiconductors. Its products help chipmakers create and process the microscopic structures that form integrated circuits. The company’s wafer fabrication equipment is used for processes including etch, thin-film deposition and wafer cleaning. Lam also provides services such as equipment maintenance, upgrades, spare parts and other support for chip manufacturing operations. Founded in 1980 and headquartered in Fremont, California, Lam Research serves semiconductor manufacturers around the world.