Lam Research (NASDAQ:LRCX) Trading Up 3.8% on Better-Than-Expected Earnings

Lam Research Co. (NASDAQ:LRCX) shares were up 3.8% during trading on Thursday following a better than expected earnings announcement. The stock traded as high as $77.48 and last traded at $75.62. Approximately 8,247,940 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 26% from the average daily volume of 11,203,075 shares. The stock had previously closed at $72.86.

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

Lam Research Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, October 1st. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 17th were paid a $0.23 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, September 17th. This represents a $0.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.18%. Lam Research’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 31.72%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

LRCX has been the subject of several analyst reports. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut their price objective on shares of Lam Research from $110.00 to $95.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, August 1st. Morgan Stanley cut their price target on Lam Research from $81.00 to $77.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on Lam Research from $88.00 to $85.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday. Mizuho reduced their target price on Lam Research from $105.00 to $95.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, September 20th. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded Lam Research from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, October 11th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $97.03.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CAO Christina Correia sold 647 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, October 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $817.51, for a total transaction of $528,928.97. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 4,267 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,488,315.17. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.29% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Lam Research

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in LRCX. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Lam Research by 1.2% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 11,856,661 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $11,519,576,000 after purchasing an additional 144,914 shares during the period. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD raised its position in Lam Research by 5.1% during 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 purchasing an additional 142,903 shares during the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA lifted its holdings in Lam Research by 7.7% during the 2nd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 1,254,188 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $1,335,522,000 after buying an additional 89,470 shares during the period. Van ECK Associates Corp lifted its holdings in Lam Research by 11.1% during the 2nd quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 1,075,893 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $1,145,664,000 after buying an additional 107,778 shares during the period. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its position in shares of Lam Research by 4.3% in the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 614,205 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $654,009,000 after buying an additional 25,362 shares during the last quarter. 84.61% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Lam Research Stock Up 1.4 %

The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $79.44 and a 200-day moving average price of $89.84. 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 company has a market capitalization of $100.68 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.96, a P/E/G ratio of 1.89 and a beta of 1.47.

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.