Lam Research (NASDAQ:LRCX) Shares Gap Up on Earnings Beat

Lam Research Co. (NASDAQ:LRCX - Get Free Report) shares gapped up prior to trading on Thursday after the company announced better than expected quarterly earnings. The stock had previously closed at $884.89, but opened at $909.33. Lam Research shares last traded at $905.51, with a volume of 288,362 shares traded.

The semiconductor company reported $7.79 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $7.26 by $0.53. Lam Research had a return on equity of 44.47% and a net margin of 24.15%. The company had revenue of $3.79 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.72 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $6.99 earnings per share. Lam Research's revenue was down 2.0% on a year-over-year basis.

Lam Research Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 3rd. Investors of record on Wednesday, March 13th were paid a dividend of $2.00 per share. This represents a $8.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.89%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, March 12th. Lam Research's dividend payout ratio is 30.94%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have recently commented on LRCX shares. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on Lam Research from $930.00 to $980.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 2nd. Needham & Company LLC reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $1,030.00 price target on shares of Lam Research in a research report on Thursday. Raymond James upped their price objective on Lam Research from $850.00 to $950.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, January 25th. Barclays boosted their target price on shares of Lam Research from $825.00 to $865.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Thursday. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus upped their price objective on Lam Research from $950.00 to $1,050.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 16th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $950.85.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Lam Research news, CAO Christina Corrreia sold 647 shares of Lam Research stock in a transaction on Monday, April 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $972.03, for a total value of $628,903.41. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 5,541 shares of the company's stock, valued at $5,386,018.23. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In other Lam Research news, Director Abhijit Y. Talwalkar sold 882 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $972.03, for a total value of $857,330.46. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 10,541 shares in the company, valued at $10,246,168.23. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CAO Christina Corrreia sold 647 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $972.03, for a total transaction of $628,903.41. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 5,541 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $5,386,018.23. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 7,029 shares of company stock valued at $6,559,489 over the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.32% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Lam Research

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Arlington Trust Co LLC boosted its position in shares of Lam Research by 7.7% during the 4th quarter. Arlington Trust Co LLC now owns 182 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $143,000 after purchasing an additional 13 shares during the period. Capital Performance Advisors LLP grew its position in Lam Research by 2.2% during the 4th quarter. Capital Performance Advisors LLP now owns 613 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $480,000 after purchasing an additional 13 shares during the last quarter. Van Leeuwen & Company LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Lam Research by 0.5% in the fourth quarter. Van Leeuwen & Company LLC now owns 2,583 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $2,023,000 after acquiring an additional 13 shares in the last quarter. Busey Bank raised its position in Lam Research by 1.5% during the first quarter. Busey Bank now owns 869 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $844,000 after acquiring an additional 13 shares during the last quarter. Finally, First Affirmative Financial Network raised its position in shares of Lam Research by 2.5% in the first quarter. First Affirmative Financial Network now owns 525 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $510,000 after buying an additional 13 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 84.61% of the company's stock.

Lam Research Trading Up 1.9 %

The company has a quick ratio of 2.02, a current ratio of 3.06 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61. The business's fifty day moving average is $943.68 and its 200-day moving average is $807.04. The stock has a market capitalization of $118.18 billion, a PE ratio of 34.86, a P/E/G ratio of 3.21 and a beta of 1.51.

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.