Lam Research (NASDAQ:LRCX) Shares Down 6.4% – Here’s What Happened

Lam Research Corporation (NASDAQ:LRCX) shares traded down 6.4% during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The company traded as low as $250.50 and last traded at $252.35. Approximately 15,663,350 shares changed hands during trading, an increase of 38% from the average daily volume of 11,355,941 shares. The stock had previously closed at $269.61.

Trending Headlines about Lam Research

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

• Positive Sentiment: Strong earnings and revenue: Lam Research reported record quarterly revenue of $6.72 billion, up 30% year over year, and adjusted EPS of $1.82 versus the $1.69 consensus estimate. Robust NAND demand and a third consecutive record in customer-support revenue helped drive the beat. Chip equipment maker Lam Research forecasts strong revenue on AI boom
• Positive Sentiment: Guidance substantially topped estimates: Management forecast first-quarter fiscal 2027 revenue of $7.7 billion to $8.5 billion and EPS of $2.00 to $2.30, compared with consensus estimates of approximately $7.0 billion and $1.81, respectively. The forecast points to continued strength in AI-related chip production, memory, advanced packaging and wafer-fabrication demand. Lam Research Corporation Reports Financial Results
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts raised their expectations: Needham reaffirmed a Buy rating and a $390 target while increasing EPS estimates after Lam lifted its equipment-market outlook. Other analysts described the company as having an “extraordinary runway” heading into 2027. Needham Raises Lam Research EPS Estimates
• Positive Sentiment: Sector-wide support: Lam’s results helped lift semiconductor stocks, alongside strong reports from major technology companies and expectations of a prolonged memory shortage. This improved sentiment toward the broader AI-chip investment cycle. Chip stocks rally

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have weighed in on LRCX shares. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $390.00 target price on shares of Lam Research in a research report on Thursday. Zacks Research upgraded Lam Research from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, July 17th. Citigroup reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $450.00 price target (up from $315.00) on shares of Lam Research in a research note on Wednesday, June 17th. Berenberg Bank increased their price objective on Lam Research from $265.00 to $335.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, April 23rd. Finally, Morgan Stanley cut their price objective on shares of Lam Research from $404.00 to $367.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-seven have assigned a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Lam Research presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $358.47.

Lam Research Stock Performance

The stock has a market cap of $375.21 billion, a P/E ratio of 52.22, a P/E/G ratio of 1.50 and a beta of 1.80. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $341.06 and a two-hundred day moving average of $276.36. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a quick ratio of 1.77 and a current ratio of 2.54.

Lam Research (NASDAQ:LRCX) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The semiconductor company reported $1.82 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.69 by $0.13. Lam Research had a return on equity of 71.15% and a net margin of 31.27%.The company had revenue of $6.72 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.66 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $1.33 EPS. The company’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, research analysts predict that Lam Research Corporation will post 7.92 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Lam Research Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 8th. Investors of record on Wednesday, June 17th were paid a dividend of $0.26 per share. This represents a $1.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.3%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, June 17th. Lam Research’s dividend payout ratio is presently 19.62%.

Insider Activity at Lam Research

In other Lam Research news, Director Eric Brandt sold 54,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $350.80, for a total value of $19,118,600.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 199,205 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $69,881,114. This represents a 21.48% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, SVP Neil J. Fernandes sold 7,659 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, June 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $309.60, for a total transaction of $2,371,226.40. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president owned 58,470 shares in the company, valued at $18,102,312. This represents a 11.58% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders sold a total of 80,441 shares of company stock worth $27,614,296 in the last ninety days. 0.31% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Lam Research

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Lam Research during the 4th quarter worth approximately $3,645,427,000. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD raised its stake in shares of 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 in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its position in Lam Research by 57.0% in the fourth quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 10,110,560 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $1,730,724,000 after purchasing an additional 3,671,073 shares during the period. Corient Private Wealth LLC lifted its position in Lam Research by 235.5% in the fourth quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 5,199,441 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $890,040,000 after purchasing an additional 3,649,553 shares during the period. Finally, J. Stern & Co. LLP boosted its stake in Lam Research by 3,826.9% during the fourth quarter. J. Stern & Co. LLP now owns 3,459,377 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $592,176,000 after buying an additional 3,371,283 shares in the last quarter. 84.61% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Lam Research Company Profile

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.