Lam Research (NASDAQ:LRCX) Reaches New 1-Year High Following Analyst Upgrade

Lam Research Co. (NASDAQ:LRCX - Get Free Report)'s share price reached a new 52-week high on Monday after Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on the stock from $980.00 to $1,100.00. Wells Fargo & Company currently has an equal weight rating on the stock. Lam Research traded as high as $1,049.94 and last traded at $1,046.30, with a volume of 250100 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $1,035.98.

Several other brokerages also recently commented on LRCX. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and set a $1,100.00 price objective on shares of Lam Research in a research note on Thursday, April 25th. Raymond James increased their price target on shares of Lam Research from $950.00 to $1,060.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, June 7th. Jefferies Financial Group started coverage on Lam Research in a research note on Monday, May 13th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $1,100.00 price target on the stock. Mizuho upped their target price on shares of Lam Research from $935.00 to $960.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, April 25th. Finally, Citigroup upped their target price on shares of Lam Research from $975.00 to $1,025.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 25th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $970.57.

Insider Buying and Selling at Lam Research

In other news, Director Abhijit Y. Talwalkar sold 882 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 sale, the director now owns 10,541 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $10,246,168.23. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, Director Abhijit Y. Talwalkar sold 882 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, April 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $972.03, for a total transaction of $857,330.46. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 10,541 shares of the company's stock, valued at $10,246,168.23. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider George M. Schisler sold 400 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $908.21, for a total transaction of $363,284.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 5,661 shares in the company, valued at $5,141,376.81. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 1,989 shares of company stock worth $1,904,810. Insiders own 0.32% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Lam Research

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. DSM Capital Partners LLC bought a new position in Lam Research during the fourth quarter worth $28,000. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Lam Research in the 4th quarter valued at $30,000. Orion Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Lam Research in the 3rd quarter valued at $25,000. Partnership Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Lam Research in the 4th quarter valued at $33,000. Finally, Ulland Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Lam Research during the 1st quarter valued at about $42,000. 84.61% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Lam Research Trading Up 3.4 %

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56, a quick ratio of 1.84 and a current ratio of 2.82. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $942.44 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $886.09. The company has a market cap of $140.11 billion, a PE ratio of 39.42, a PEG ratio of 3.58 and a beta of 1.46.

Shares of Lam Research are going to split before the market opens on Thursday, October 3rd. The 10-1 split was announced on Tuesday, May 21st. The newly created shares will be payable to shareholders after the closing bell on Wednesday, October 2nd.

Lam Research (NASDAQ:LRCX - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, April 24th. 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 45.96% and a net margin of 25.35%. The business had revenue of $3.79 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.72 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $6.99 earnings per share. Lam Research's revenue was down 2.0% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts forecast that Lam Research Co. will post 29.67 EPS for the current year.

Lam Research Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 10th. Investors of record on Tuesday, June 18th will be issued a dividend of $2.00 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, June 18th. This represents a $8.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.75%. Lam Research's payout ratio is presently 29.42%.

Lam Research declared that its Board of Directors has approved a stock buyback program on Tuesday, May 21st that allows the company to buyback $10.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the semiconductor company to repurchase up to 8.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are often a sign that the company's management believes its stock is undervalued.

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.