Erste Asset Management GmbH Invests $96.48 Million in Lam Research Co. (NASDAQ:LRCX)

Erste Asset Management GmbH purchased a new stake in Lam Research Co. (NASDAQ:LRCX - Free Report) during the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 117,234 shares of the semiconductor company's stock, valued at approximately $96,483,000. Lam Research makes up 1.2% of Erste Asset Management GmbH's holdings, making the stock its 13th largest holding.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of LRCX. Jennison Associates LLC increased its holdings in shares of Lam Research by 20.0% in the third quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 238,275 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $194,451,000 after purchasing an additional 39,725 shares in the last quarter. Creative Planning increased its stake in shares of Lam Research by 2.5% in the 3rd quarter. Creative Planning now owns 47,377 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $38,664,000 after buying an additional 1,146 shares during the period. Vest Financial LLC raised its position in shares of Lam Research by 68.7% during the third quarter. Vest Financial LLC now owns 35,991 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $29,372,000 after acquiring an additional 14,658 shares during the last quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Lam Research by 9.0% during the third quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. now owns 340,855 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $278,165,000 after acquiring an additional 28,089 shares during the period. Finally, Benson Investment Management Company Inc. bought a new position in Lam Research in the third quarter valued at about $5,182,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 84.61% of the company's stock.

Lam Research Stock Performance

LRCX stock traded up $2.31 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $73.88. The stock had a trading volume of 10,736,454 shares, compared to its average volume of 9,962,676. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $76.52 and a 200 day simple moving average of $86.67. Lam Research Co. has a fifty-two week low of $68.72 and a fifty-two week high of $113.00. The stock has a market capitalization of $95.06 billion, a PE ratio of 23.88, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.17 and a beta of 1.48. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.53, a current ratio of 2.53 and a quick ratio of 1.74.

Lam Research (NASDAQ:LRCX - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The semiconductor company reported $0.86 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.81 by $0.05. Lam Research had a return on equity of 50.60% and a net margin of 26.02%. The business had revenue of $4.17 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.06 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $6.85 earnings per share. Lam Research's quarterly revenue was up 19.7% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts predict that Lam Research Co. will post 3.52 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Lam Research Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 8th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, December 11th will be issued a $0.23 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, December 11th. This represents a $0.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.25%. Lam Research's dividend payout ratio is currently 29.74%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Morgan Stanley cut their price objective on shares of Lam Research from $81.00 to $77.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Citigroup cut their price target on Lam Research from $99.00 to $89.30 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, September 16th. Sanford C. Bernstein decreased their price objective on Lam Research from $95.00 to $85.00 and set a "market perform" rating for the company in a research note on Friday. BNP Paribas raised Lam Research to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Finally, UBS Group decreased their target price on Lam Research from $125.00 to $115.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, September 12th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Lam Research has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $97.29.

Insider Activity

In other news, CAO Christina Correia sold 647 shares of Lam Research 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 completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 4,267 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,488,315.17. This trade represents a 13.17 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.29% of the company's stock.

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.