QRG Capital Management Inc. Invests $31.08 Million in Lam Research Co. (NASDAQ:LRCX)

QRG Capital Management Inc. bought a new stake in Lam Research Co. (NASDAQ:LRCX - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm bought 430,043 shares of the semiconductor company's stock, valued at approximately $31,078,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Financial Perspectives Inc boosted its stake in shares of Lam Research by 908.8% during the fourth quarter. Financial Perspectives Inc now owns 343 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 309 shares during the period. Atwood & Palmer Inc. acquired a new position in Lam Research during the fourth quarter worth about $27,000. Midwest Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Lam Research in the fourth quarter valued at about $27,000. West Oak Capital LLC lifted its position in shares of Lam Research by 50.9% during the 4th quarter. West Oak Capital LLC now owns 400 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 135 shares during the period. Finally, Country Trust Bank boosted its position in Lam Research by 900.0% during the fourth quarter. Country Trust Bank now owns 400 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 360 shares in the last quarter. 84.61% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Lam Research Price Performance

Shares of LRCX traded up $0.53 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $76.70. 22,602,967 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 12,920,543. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51, a current ratio of 2.54 and a quick ratio of 1.73. The company has a market capitalization of $98.45 billion, a PE ratio of 23.30, a PEG ratio of 1.47 and a beta of 1.46. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $78.94 and a 200-day simple moving average of $78.09. Lam Research Co. has a one year low of $68.87 and a one year high of $113.00.

Lam Research (NASDAQ:LRCX - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The semiconductor company reported $0.91 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.87 by $0.04. Lam Research had a return on equity of 51.86% and a net margin of 26.49%. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Lam Research Co. will post 3.71 earnings per share for the current year.

Lam Research Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 9th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, March 5th will be issued a dividend of $0.23 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, March 5th. This represents a $0.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.20%. Lam Research's dividend payout ratio is currently 27.96%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have weighed in on LRCX shares. Barclays cut their price target on Lam Research from $90.00 to $75.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 17th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on Lam Research from $82.00 to $85.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $90.00 price target on shares of Lam Research in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Sanford C. Bernstein upgraded shares of Lam Research from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and boosted their target price for the company from $85.00 to $91.00 in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, Mizuho raised their price target on Lam Research from $87.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, February 20th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seventeen have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $98.22.

Insider Activity at Lam Research

In related news, SVP Seshasayee Varadarajan sold 110,080 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $90.00, for a total transaction of $9,907,200.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 179,084 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $16,117,560. The trade was a 38.07 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.29% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.