Principal Financial Group Inc. Sells 255,885 Shares of Lam Research Corporation $LRCX

Principal Financial Group Inc. cut its holdings in Lam Research Corporation (NASDAQ:LRCX) by 10.7% in the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 2,138,949 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock after selling 255,885 shares during the quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in Lam Research were worth $286,405,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Brighton Jones LLC lifted its stake in shares of Lam Research by 1,032.4% in the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 14,189 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $1,025,000 after purchasing an additional 12,936 shares during the last quarter. Caxton Associates LLP acquired a new position in Lam Research during the first quarter worth $239,000. Hilltop National Bank bought a new position in Lam Research during the second quarter valued at about $38,000. Hennessy Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Lam Research in the second quarter worth about $143,000. Finally, Bay Harbor Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Lam Research by 46.1% in the second quarter. Bay Harbor Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,632 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $159,000 after buying an additional 515 shares during the last quarter. 84.61% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on the company. BNP Paribas Exane raised their price objective on Lam Research from $80.00 to $140.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on Lam Research from $250.00 to $290.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday. Sanford C. Bernstein set a $275.00 price target on shares of Lam Research in a research report on Thursday. Evercore ISI set a $275.00 price objective on shares of Lam Research in a report on Thursday. Finally, Rothschild & Co Redburn raised their target price on shares of Lam Research from $150.00 to $225.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 13th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-eight have given a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $238.32.

Lam Research Trading Down 5.9%

Shares of Lam Research stock opened at $233.46 on Monday. Lam Research Corporation has a 1 year low of $56.32 and a 1 year high of $251.87. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $187.29 and its 200-day simple moving average is $146.66. The company has a market cap of $291.54 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 47.84, a PEG ratio of 2.62 and a beta of 1.78. The company has a current ratio of 2.26, a quick ratio of 1.61 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37.

Lam Research (NASDAQ:LRCX) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 28th. The semiconductor company reported $1.27 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.17 by $0.10. The firm had revenue of $5.34 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.23 billion. Lam Research had a net margin of 30.22% and a return on equity of 62.81%. The business’s revenue was up 22.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.91 EPS. Lam Research has set its Q3 2026 guidance at 1.250-1.450 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Lam Research Corporation will post 3.71 EPS for the current year.

Lam Research Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, January 7th. Investors of record on Wednesday, December 3rd were given a dividend of $0.26 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, December 3rd. This represents a $1.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.4%. Lam Research’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 21.31%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CFO Douglas R. Bettinger sold 40,080 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $150.60, for a total transaction of $6,036,048.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 987,237 shares in the company, valued at $148,677,892.20. The trade was a 3.90% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. 0.31% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Key Headlines Impacting Lam Research

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

• Positive Sentiment: Multiple major brokers sharply raised targets (many to $275–$300), signaling broad analyst bullishness after the quarter and suggesting upside versus earlier prices. These Analysts Boost Their Forecasts On Lam Research Following Strong Q2 Results
• Positive Sentiment: JPMorgan and Citigroup raised targets to $300 (overweight/buy), and firms including Needham, TD Cowen, Wells Fargo, Deutsche and Stifel also lifted targets — a strong institutional vote of confidence for continued AI/foundry-driven demand. Analyst target increases (Benzinga)
• Positive Sentiment: Lam beat Q2 estimates (EPS $1.27 vs. $1.17 est.; revenue $5.34B vs. $5.23B) and issued Q3 EPS guidance of $1.25–$1.45 and revenue above consensus — concrete operational drivers behind analyst upgrades. Lam Research Q2 Earnings Surpass Expectations, Revenues Rise Y/Y
• Neutral Sentiment: New Street Research raised its target to $235 but kept a neutral rating, reflecting near-term upside limited relative to recent price strength. New Street adjusts price target on Lam Research to $235
• Negative Sentiment: HSBC raised its target to $221 but maintained a “hold,” which implies downside from recent levels and highlights some analyst caution despite better results. HSBC adjusts price target on Lam Research to $221
• Negative Sentiment: Coverage notes flag valuation concerns after a large run (high P/E and steep analyst target dispersion), which may limit further upside and explains some profit?taking. Lam Research Earnings Beat Highlights AI Demand But Raises Valuation Questions

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.