Lam Research (NASDAQ:LRCX) Shares Gap Up After Strong Earnings

Lam Research Co. (NASDAQ:LRCX)’s share price gapped up before the market opened on Thursday following a better than expected earnings announcement. The stock had previously closed at $72.86, but opened at $76.18. Lam Research shares last traded at $76.02, with a volume of 3,870,257 shares trading hands.

The semiconductor company reported $0.86 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.81 by $0.05. The company had revenue of $4.17 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.06 billion. Lam Research had a net margin of 25.68% and a return on equity of 48.71%. Lam Research’s revenue was up 19.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $6.85 earnings per share.

Lam Research Cuts Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, October 1st. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 17th were paid a $0.23 dividend. This represents a $0.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.18%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, September 17th. Lam Research’s dividend payout ratio is currently 31.72%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

LRCX has been the subject of several analyst reports. Cantor Fitzgerald restated a “neutral” rating and set a $100.00 price target on shares of Lam Research in a report on Thursday. UBS Group dropped their target price on shares of Lam Research from $125.00 to $115.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, September 12th. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $100.00 price target on shares of Lam Research in a report on Thursday. Stifel Nicolaus reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $100.00 price objective (down from $105.00) on shares of Lam Research in a research note on Thursday. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft decreased their target price on Lam Research from $110.00 to $95.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, August 1st. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $97.03.

Insider Transactions at Lam Research

In related news, CAO Christina Correia sold 647 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, October 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $817.51, for a total value of $528,928.97. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 4,267 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,488,315.17. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.29% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Lam Research

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of LRCX. Foster Victor Wealth Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Lam Research by 994.1% in the third quarter. Foster Victor Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 232,901 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $190,066,000 after purchasing an additional 211,614 shares during the last quarter. Swedbank AB purchased a new stake in Lam Research in the 1st quarter valued at about $192,668,000. Van ECK Associates Corp lifted its position in shares of Lam Research by 24.6% during the 1st quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 968,115 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $940,592,000 after buying an additional 191,230 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Lam Research by 1.2% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 11,856,661 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $11,519,576,000 after buying an additional 144,914 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD boosted its stake in shares of Lam Research by 5.1% in the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 2,959,151 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $2,875,023,000 after buying an additional 142,903 shares during the last quarter. 84.61% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Lam Research Trading Up 1.4 %

The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $79.44 and a 200-day moving average price of $89.84. The company has a market capitalization of $100.68 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.96, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.89 and a beta of 1.47. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52, a current ratio of 2.97 and a quick ratio of 2.00.

About Lam Research

Lam Research Corporation designs, manufactures, markets, refurbishes, and services semiconductor processing equipment used in the fabrication of integrated circuits. The company offers ALTUS systems to deposit conformal films for tungsten metallization applications; SABRE electrochemical deposition products for copper interconnect transition that offers copper damascene manufacturing; SOLA ultraviolet thermal processing products for film treatments; and VECTOR plasma-enhanced CVD ALD products.