Lam Research (NASDAQ:LRCX) Hits New 52-Week High Following Analyst Upgrade

Shares of Lam Research Corporation (NASDAQ:LRCX) reached a new 52-week high on Friday after Morgan Stanley raised their price target on the stock from $260.00 to $293.00. Morgan Stanley currently has an equal weight rating on the stock. Lam Research traded as high as $275.84 and last traded at $267.91, with a volume of 2534134 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $258.56.

A number of other research firms have also commented on LRCX. The Goldman Sachs Group restated a “buy” rating and issued a $290.00 price objective on shares of Lam Research in a research report on Thursday. BNP Paribas Exane upped their target price on shares of Lam Research from $250.00 to $260.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday. Argus increased their target price on shares of Lam Research from $175.00 to $280.00 in a research note on Tuesday, February 3rd. Citic Securities raised their price target on shares of Lam Research from $165.00 to $275.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 30th. Finally, UBS Group set a $300.00 price target on shares of Lam Research in a research report on Thursday, January 29th. Twenty-six research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $283.65.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CFO Douglas R. Bettinger sold 50,057 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $224.03, for a total value of $11,214,269.71. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 1,081,705 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $242,334,371.15. This represents a 4.42% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Ava Harter sold 4,000 shares of Lam Research stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $232.50, for a total value of $930,000.00. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 54,705 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $12,718,912.50. This trade represents a 6.81% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 130,886 shares of company stock worth $29,658,802. Corporate insiders own 0.31% of the company’s stock.

Lam Research News Summary

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

• Positive Sentiment: Q3 results beat expectations (EPS $1.47, revenue $5.84B) and management gave strong FY guidance tied to AI demand — investors view this as confirmation of a multi-year WFE upcycle. Earnings & press coverage
• Positive Sentiment: Major analysts have lifted price targets across the board (examples: TD Cowen $340, Susquehanna $385, JPMorgan $315, BofA $330), signaling upgraded revenue and margin forecasts driven by AI memory and logic chip spending. Analyst target upgrades
• Positive Sentiment: Several bank research notes reiterated buy/outperform ratings and sizable upside, reinforcing momentum and prompting institutional buyers to add exposure. Deutsche Bank price target raise
• Neutral Sentiment: Broad market action (Dow slip while Nasdaq gains) and strong moves in other chip names (Intel, AMD, Arm) contributed to sector flow into semiconductor-equipment names including LRCX. Market breadth coverage
• Neutral Sentiment: Not all firms moved to buy: a few kept neutral/equal-weight stances (e.g., Morgan Stanley, BNP Paribas), showing some analysts want to see more cycles of delivery before upgrading conviction. Morgan Stanley note
• Negative Sentiment: Valuation concerns: commentary and analysis warn the stock reflects a lot of AI upside already — some investors may view multiple and momentum as stretched, which could amplify pullbacks on any growth-slow surprises. Valuation caution analysis

Institutional Trading of Lam Research

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Brighton Jones LLC boosted 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 in the last quarter. Caxton Associates LLP bought a new stake in Lam Research in the first quarter worth $239,000. Gabelli Funds LLC bought a new stake in Lam Research in the second quarter worth $253,000. NewEdge Advisors LLC boosted its position in Lam Research by 2.7% during the second quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 100,528 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $9,785,000 after buying an additional 2,661 shares during the period. Finally, Osterweis Capital Management Inc. boosted its position in Lam Research by 5,206.7% during the second quarter. Osterweis Capital Management Inc. now owns 796 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $77,000 after buying an additional 781 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 84.61% of the company’s stock.

Lam Research Stock Up 3.6%

The stock has a market capitalization of $334.40 billion, a P/E ratio of 50.52, a PEG ratio of 2.69 and a beta of 1.78. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $234.99 and a 200-day moving average price of $197.84. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a current ratio of 2.54 and a quick ratio of 1.61.

Lam Research (NASDAQ:LRCX) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, April 22nd. The semiconductor company reported $1.47 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.36 by $0.11. The company had revenue of $5.84 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.70 billion. Lam Research had a return on equity of 66.21% and a net margin of 30.94%.Lam Research’s revenue for the quarter was up 23.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.04 EPS. Lam Research has set its Q4 2026 guidance at 1.500-1.800 EPS. As a group, research analysts expect that Lam Research Corporation will post 5.43 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Lam Research Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 8th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, March 4th were given a $0.26 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, March 4th. This represents a $1.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.4%. Lam Research’s payout ratio is presently 19.62%.

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.