Lam Research (NASDAQ:LRCX) Hits New 52-Week Low – Here’s What Happened

Lam Research Co. (NASDAQ:LRCX)’s stock price hit a new 52-week low on Thursday . The company traded as low as $66.93 and last traded at $67.28, with a volume of 5738323 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $73.78.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have commented on LRCX. Mizuho boosted their price target on shares of Lam Research from $87.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 20th. Wolfe Research downgraded Lam Research from an “outperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 15th. Needham & Company LLC restated a “buy” rating and set a $90.00 price target on shares of Lam Research in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Susquehanna upgraded Lam Research from a “neutral” rating to a “positive” rating and increased their target price for the company from $75.00 to $125.00 in a research report on Thursday, February 20th. Finally, Barclays decreased their target price on shares of Lam Research from $90.00 to $75.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 17th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $97.59.

Lam Research Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51, a quick ratio of 1.73 and a current ratio of 2.54. The firm has a market cap of $75.85 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.95, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.47 and a beta of 1.53. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $78.26 and its 200 day moving average price is $77.07.

Lam Research (NASDAQ:LRCX) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The semiconductor company reported $0.91 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.87 by $0.04. Lam Research had a return on equity of 51.86% and a net margin of 26.49%. Sell-side analysts expect that Lam Research Co. will post 3.71 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Lam Research Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 9th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, March 5th will be paid a dividend of $0.23 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, March 5th. This represents a $0.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.56%. Lam Research’s payout ratio is 27.96%.

Insider Activity

In related news, SVP Seshasayee Varadarajan sold 110,080 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $90.00, for a total value of $9,907,200.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 179,084 shares in the company, valued at approximately $16,117,560. This represents a 38.07 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.29% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Lam Research

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Financial Perspectives Inc grew its position in shares of Lam Research by 908.8% during the 4th quarter. Financial Perspectives Inc now owns 343 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 309 shares during the period. Fairway Wealth LLC grew its holdings in Lam Research by 900.0% in the fourth quarter. Fairway Wealth LLC now owns 340 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 306 shares during the period. Atwood & Palmer Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Lam Research in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Midwest Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Lam Research during the fourth quarter valued at $27,000. Finally, West Paces Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Lam Research in the fourth quarter valued at about $27,000. 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.