Morgan Stanley Cuts Lam Research (NASDAQ:LRCX) Price Target to $367.00

Lam Research (NASDAQ:LRCX) had its price target dropped by stock analysts at Morgan Stanley from $404.00 to $367.00 in a research note issued on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has an “overweight” rating on the semiconductor company’s stock. Morgan Stanley’s price target suggests a potential upside of 24.03% from the company’s previous close.

Other equities analysts also recently issued research reports about the company. Weiss Ratings upgraded Lam Research from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 23rd. Rothschild & Co Redburn raised their price objective on shares of Lam Research from $305.00 to $420.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 17th. Barclays restated an “overweight” rating and set a $335.00 target price (up from $275.00) on shares of Lam Research in a research report on Thursday, June 11th. Oppenheimer reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $400.00 price objective (up from $330.00) on shares of Lam Research in a report on Monday, June 15th. Finally, Berenberg Bank upped their price objective on shares of Lam Research from $265.00 to $335.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 23rd. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-eight have given a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $358.47.

Lam Research Stock Performance

Shares of LRCX traded up $43.54 on Thursday, reaching $295.89. 12,203,401 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 11,366,769. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $341.14 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $275.79. The stock has a market cap of $370.03 billion, a PE ratio of 55.96, a PEG ratio of 1.60 and a beta of 1.80. Lam Research has a 52-week low of $90.93 and a 52-week high of $438.50. The company has a current ratio of 2.54, a quick ratio of 1.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35.

Lam Research (NASDAQ:LRCX) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 29th. The semiconductor company reported $1.82 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.69 by $0.13. Lam Research had a return on equity of 66.21% and a net margin of 30.94%.The firm had revenue of $6.72 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.66 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.33 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 30.0% on a year-over-year basis. Lam Research has set its Q1 2027 guidance at 2.000-2.300 EPS. On average, analysts forecast that Lam Research will post 5.68 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Lam Research

In other Lam Research news, Director Eric Brandt sold 54,500 shares of Lam Research stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $350.80, for a total transaction of $19,118,600.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 199,205 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $69,881,114. This trade represents a 21.48% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director Abhijit Y. Talwalkar sold 18,282 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $335.00, for a total transaction of $6,124,470.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 87,142 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $29,192,570. The trade was a 17.34% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold 98,611 shares of company stock worth $32,250,190 over the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.31% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. State Street Corp lifted its stake in shares of Lam Research by 0.4% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 59,817,352 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $8,024,684,000 after acquiring an additional 265,805 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Lam Research by 0.4% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 33,747,368 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $5,764,117,000 after purchasing an additional 126,613 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. increased its stake in Lam Research by 7.7% in the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 22,821,354 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $3,906,559,000 after purchasing an additional 1,638,406 shares during the period. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Lam Research in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $3,645,427,000. Finally, Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD lifted its position in Lam Research by 352.2% in the fourth quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 13,695,210 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $2,344,347,000 after purchasing an additional 10,666,540 shares during the last quarter. 84.61% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Key Stories Impacting Lam Research

Here are the key news stories impacting Lam Research this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Lam Research reported record quarterly revenue of $6.72 billion, up 30% year over year, while adjusted EPS of $1.82 exceeded the $1.69 consensus estimate. Reuters article
• Positive Sentiment: Fiscal first-quarter 2027 guidance was well above expectations: revenue of $7.7 billion-$8.5 billion versus the $7.0 billion consensus, and EPS of $2.00-$2.30 versus $1.81 expected. Benzinga article
• Positive Sentiment: Growth was broad-based, with NAND revenue more than doubling sequentially and customer-support revenue reaching a third consecutive record. Management also highlighted accelerating demand for memory, advanced packaging and wafer-fabrication equipment as AI infrastructure investment expands. Zacks article
• Positive Sentiment: Needham reaffirmed its Buy rating and set a $390 price target, suggesting continued analyst confidence in Lam Research’s earnings growth. Benzinga analyst update
• Neutral Sentiment: Erste Group modestly raised its fiscal 2027 EPS forecast to $8.05 from $7.98 but retained a Hold rating.
• Negative Sentiment: B. Riley lowered its price target to $350 from $385, although it maintained a Buy rating and still sees meaningful upside. Investors also continue to monitor China-related equipment risks and the sector’s elevated valuation following its rebound. Benzinga analyst update

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.