Short Interest in Lam Research Co. (NASDAQ:LRCX) Increases By 17.6%

Lam Research Co. (NASDAQ:LRCX - Get Free Report) saw a significant increase in short interest during the month of May. As of May 15th, there was short interest totalling 27,590,000 shares, an increase of 17.6% from the April 30th total of 23,470,000 shares. Approximately 2.2% of the shares of the company are sold short. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 12,750,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 2.2 days.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have issued reports on LRCX. Susquehanna upgraded shares of Lam Research from a "neutral" rating to a "positive" rating and raised their price target for the stock from $75.00 to $125.00 in a research report on Thursday, February 20th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on Lam Research from $85.00 to $75.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 24th. Barclays reduced their target price on shares of Lam Research from $75.00 to $70.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 22nd. UBS Group lowered their price target on Lam Research from $95.00 to $90.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 14th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an "overweight" rating and issued a $90.00 price target on shares of Lam Research in a report on Thursday, April 24th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eighteen have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $91.56.

Lam Research Stock Performance

NASDAQ:LRCX traded up $1.44 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $86.35. 7,875,825 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 12,260,798. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $74.51 and its 200 day simple moving average is $76.35. The stock has a market capitalization of $110.45 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.23, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.47 and a beta of 1.65. Lam Research has a fifty-two week low of $56.32 and a fifty-two week high of $113.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51, a quick ratio of 1.73 and a current ratio of 2.54.

Lam Research (NASDAQ:LRCX - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 23rd. The semiconductor company reported $1.04 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.00 by $0.04. Lam Research had a net margin of 26.49% and a return on equity of 51.86%. The business had revenue of $4.72 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.64 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $7.79 earnings per share. The company's revenue was up 24.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Lam Research will post 3.71 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Lam Research Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 9th. Investors of record on Wednesday, June 18th will be given a dividend of $0.23 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, June 18th. This represents a $0.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.07%. Lam Research's dividend payout ratio is currently 25.63%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Lam Research

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. One Charles Private Wealth Services LLC increased its position in Lam Research by 843.4% during the 4th quarter. One Charles Private Wealth Services LLC now owns 4,000 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $289,000 after purchasing an additional 3,576 shares during the period. Brighton Jones LLC boosted its position in Lam Research by 1,032.4% during the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 14,189 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $1,025,000 after acquiring an additional 12,936 shares during the last quarter. DAVENPORT & Co LLC grew its holdings in Lam Research by 886.5% during the 4th quarter. DAVENPORT & Co LLC now owns 23,152 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $1,672,000 after acquiring an additional 20,805 shares during the period. Spire Wealth Management raised its position in shares of Lam Research by 209.1% in the 4th quarter. Spire Wealth Management now owns 5,205 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $376,000 after acquiring an additional 3,521 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Golden State Equity Partners acquired a new position in shares of Lam Research in the 4th quarter valued at about $207,000. 84.61% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.