Lam Research Co. (NASDAQ:LRCX) Short Interest Update

Lam Research Co. (NASDAQ:LRCX) was the recipient of a large growth in short interest in the month of August. As of August 15th, there was short interest totalling 2,400,000 shares, a growth of 14.3% from the July 31st total of 2,100,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 1,140,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 2.1 days. Currently, 1.8% of the company’s stock are sold short.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on LRCX shares. StockNews.com downgraded Lam Research from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, July 26th. Citigroup decreased their price objective on Lam Research from $1,025.00 to $990.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, August 5th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on shares of Lam Research from $1,100.00 to $1,000.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, August 1st. B. Riley boosted their target price on Lam Research from $1,130.00 to $1,325.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, June 20th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $1,130.00 price objective on shares of Lam Research in a research report on Thursday, August 1st. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $1,006.10.

Lam Research Stock Performance

LRCX opened at $821.01 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $107.34 billion, a PE ratio of 30.20, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.58 and a beta of 1.48. Lam Research has a 1 year low of $574.42 and a 1 year high of $1,130.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52, a current ratio of 2.97 and a quick ratio of 2.00. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $929.97 and a 200 day simple moving average of $943.74.

Lam Research’s stock is set to split on Thursday, October 3rd. The 10-1 split was announced on Tuesday, May 21st. The newly created shares will be distributed to shareholders after the closing bell on Wednesday, October 2nd.

Lam Research (NASDAQ:LRCX) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 31st. The semiconductor company reported $8.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $7.58 by $0.56. Lam Research had a return on equity of 48.71% and a net margin of 25.68%. The company had revenue of $3.87 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.82 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $5.98 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 20.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts expect that Lam Research will post 35.2 EPS for the current year.

Lam Research Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 1st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 17th will be issued a dividend of $2.30 per share. This represents a $9.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.12%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 17th. This is a positive change from Lam Research’s previous quarterly dividend of $2.00. Lam Research’s payout ratio is 33.84%.

Lam Research declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock buyback program on Tuesday, May 21st that authorizes the company to buyback $10.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the semiconductor company to repurchase up to 8.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are often an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CAO Christina Correia sold 647 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,062.26, for a total value of $687,282.22. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 4,914 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,219,945.64. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In other Lam Research news, CEO Timothy Archer sold 9,650 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,070.39, for a total transaction of $10,329,263.50. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 84,639 shares in the company, valued at $90,596,739.21. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CAO Christina Correia sold 647 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,062.26, for a total value of $687,282.22. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 4,914 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,219,945.64. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 16,326 shares of company stock worth $17,383,715. 0.32% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. DSM Capital Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Lam Research during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $28,000. CarsonAllaria Wealth Management Ltd. bought a new stake in Lam Research during the second quarter valued at $32,000. Partnership Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Lam Research during the 4th quarter worth about $33,000. RFP Financial Group LLC boosted its position in shares of Lam Research by 52.2% during the 2nd quarter. RFP Financial Group LLC now owns 35 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $37,000 after purchasing an additional 12 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Atlantic Edge Private Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Lam Research in the fourth quarter worth approximately $39,000. 84.61% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Lam Research Company Profile

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.