Lam Research (NASDAQ:LRCX) Stock Price Down 4.8% – Time to Sell?

Lam Research Corporation (NASDAQ:LRCX) shares dropped 4.8% during trading on Monday. The stock traded as low as $224.58 and last traded at $227.56. Approximately 11,324,814 shares traded hands during trading, an increase of 5% from the average daily volume of 10,794,470 shares. The stock had previously closed at $239.11.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Jefferies Financial Group set a $335.00 price objective on Lam Research and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, July 30th. Berenberg Bank set a $420.00 target price on shares of Lam Research in a report on Wednesday, September 9th. Needham & Company LLC reduced their price target on shares of Lam Research from $390.00 to $290.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, October 22nd. Bank of America reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $345.00 price target on shares of Lam Research in a research note on Thursday, October 22nd. Finally, HSBC reissued a “hold” rating and set a $333.00 price objective on shares of Lam Research in a research report on Monday, July 27th. Twenty-six analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Lam Research currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $360.23.

Lam Research Stock Down 4.8%

The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $294.47 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $283.78. The company has a market capitalization of $284.26 billion, a PE ratio of 33.91, a P/E/G ratio of 0.89 and a beta of 1.97. The company has a current ratio of 2.48, a quick ratio of 1.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27.

Lam Research (NASDAQ:LRCX) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, October 21st. The semiconductor company reported $2.20 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.18 by $0.02. Lam Research had a return on equity of 72.15% and a net margin of 32.34%. The business had revenue of $8.22 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.14 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.26 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 54.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts expect that Lam Research Corporation will post 9.59 EPS for the current year.

Lam Research Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, October 14th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, September 23rd were paid a $0.33 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, September 23rd. This represents a $1.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.6%. This is an increase from Lam Research’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.26. Lam Research’s dividend payout ratio is presently 19.67%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Bethany Mayer sold 9,557 shares of Lam Research stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, September 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $314.74, for a total value of $3,007,970.18. Following the sale, the director owned 20,995 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,607,966.30. The trade was a 31.28% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Ava Harter sold 5,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $302.46, for a total transaction of $1,512,300.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 42,462 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,843,056.52. This trade represents a 10.53% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. 0.31% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Lam Research

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Paladin Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Lam Research during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $26,000. William Mack & Associates Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Lam Research in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Dakota Community Bank & Trust NA purchased a new stake in shares of Lam Research in the third quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Quintet Private Bank Europe S.A. boosted its stake in shares of Lam Research by 100.0% in the third quarter. Quintet Private Bank Europe S.A. now owns 100 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 50 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bravera Wealth acquired a new position in Lam Research during the second quarter worth $46,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 84.61% of the company’s stock.

About Lam Research

Lam Research Corporation (NASDAQ:LRCX) is a semiconductor equipment company that develops and manufactures systems used to fabricate integrated circuits. Its technologies support key stages of wafer processing, helping semiconductor manufacturers create the increasingly complex structures found in memory, logic and other types of chips.

The company’s product portfolio includes etch systems, which selectively remove materials from wafers; deposition systems, which apply thin films; and cleaning solutions used to remove contaminants and residue during manufacturing.