Lam Research (NASDAQ:LRCX) Stock Price Up 1.9% Following Analyst Upgrade

Key Points

• Shares rose 1.9% after Stifel Nicolaus raised its price target to $300 and kept a buy rating, joining several other firms that have recently lifted targets (consensus: Moderate Buy; consensus price target $246.94).
• Quarterly results beat expectations: Lam reported EPS of $1.27 vs. $1.17 consensus and revenue of $5.34B, and set Q3 2026 guidance of $1.25–$1.45 EPS.
• Insiders sold 130,886 shares (~$29.66M) in the last quarter (insiders now own 0.31%), while institutions hold about 84.61% of the stock.

Lam Research Corporation (NASDAQ:LRCX - Get Free Report)'s stock price rose 1.9% during trading on Tuesday after Stifel Nicolaus raised their price target on the stock from $280.00 to $300.00. Stifel Nicolaus currently has a buy rating on the stock. Lam Research traded as high as $273.50 and last traded at $272.41. Approximately 8,387,876 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 27% from the average daily volume of 11,533,455 shares. The stock had previously closed at $267.32.

Other equities research analysts have also recently issued research reports about the company. Citic Securities increased their target price on Lam Research from $165.00 to $275.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, January 30th. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated an "outperform" rating and set a $290.00 target price (up from $260.00) on shares of Lam Research in a report on Thursday, January 29th. Evercore set a $275.00 price target on Lam Research in a research note on Thursday, January 29th. Zacks Research lowered Lam Research from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, April 6th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on Lam Research from $250.00 to $290.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, January 29th. Twenty-seven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $246.94.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Ava Harter sold 4,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, March 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $232.50, for a total value of $930,000.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 54,705 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $12,718,912.50. This trade represents a 6.81% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CFO Douglas R. Bettinger sold 50,057 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $224.03, for a total value of $11,214,269.71. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 1,081,705 shares in the company, valued at $242,334,371.15. This trade represents a 4.42% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold a total of 130,886 shares of company stock valued at $29,658,802 in the last quarter. 0.31% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Lingohr Asset Management GmbH grew its position in Lam Research by 590.7% in the third quarter. Lingohr Asset Management GmbH now owns 59,555 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $7,974,000 after acquiring an additional 50,933 shares in the last quarter. Mediolanum International Funds Ltd grew its stake in shares of Lam Research by 52.0% during the third quarter. Mediolanum International Funds Ltd now owns 262,544 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $34,417,000 after acquiring an additional 89,856 shares in the last quarter. First Citizens Bank & Trust Co. grew its stake in shares of Lam Research by 8.0% during the third quarter. First Citizens Bank & Trust Co. now owns 140,433 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $18,804,000 after acquiring an additional 10,408 shares in the last quarter. Thoroughbred Financial Services LLC grew its stake in shares of Lam Research by 115.2% during the third quarter. Thoroughbred Financial Services LLC now owns 22,198 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $2,972,000 after acquiring an additional 11,883 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Truist Financial Corp grew its stake in shares of Lam Research by 119.6% during the third quarter. Truist Financial Corp now owns 1,676,637 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $224,502,000 after acquiring an additional 913,009 shares in the last quarter. 84.61% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Lam Research Stock Up 1.9%

The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $228.24 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $190.76. The company has a quick ratio of 1.61, a current ratio of 2.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37. The company has a market capitalization of $340.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 55.82, a P/E/G ratio of 2.81 and a beta of 1.78.

Lam Research (NASDAQ:LRCX - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, January 28th. The semiconductor company reported $1.27 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.17 by $0.10. The company had revenue of $5.34 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.23 billion. Lam Research had a return on equity of 62.81% and a net margin of 30.22%.The company's revenue was up 22.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.91 earnings per share. Lam Research has set its Q3 2026 guidance at 1.250-1.450 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Lam Research Corporation will post 3.71 earnings per share for the current year.

Lam Research Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 8th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, March 4th were paid a dividend of $0.26 per share. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, March 4th. This represents a $1.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.4%. Lam Research's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 21.31%.

About Lam Research

Lam Research Corporation NASDAQ: LRCX is a global supplier of wafer fabrication equipment and services to the semiconductor industry. Founded in 1980 by David K. Lam and headquartered in Fremont, California, the company develops and manufactures systems used in multiple stages of semiconductor device production, including thin film deposition, plasma etch, wafer cleaning and related process modules and automation.

Lam's product portfolio covers core process technologies employed by logic and memory manufacturers, with equipment designed to support advanced-node patterning, 3D NAND and other emerging device architectures.

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