AlphaQuest LLC Raises Stake in Lam Research Co. (NASDAQ:LRCX)

AlphaQuest LLC raised its stake in shares of Lam Research Co. (NASDAQ:LRCX) by 182.0% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 4,354 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock after buying an additional 2,810 shares during the quarter. AlphaQuest LLC’s holdings in Lam Research were worth $314,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of LRCX. Financial Perspectives Inc increased its holdings in Lam Research by 908.8% during the 4th quarter. Financial Perspectives Inc now owns 343 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 309 shares during the period. Atwood & Palmer Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Lam Research during the 4th quarter valued at $27,000. Midwest Capital Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Lam Research in the fourth quarter worth $27,000. West Oak Capital LLC raised its position in shares of Lam Research by 50.9% in the fourth quarter. West Oak Capital LLC now owns 400 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 135 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Country Trust Bank boosted its stake in Lam Research by 900.0% during the fourth quarter. Country Trust Bank now owns 400 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 360 shares during the period. 84.61% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, SVP Seshasayee Varadarajan sold 110,080 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $90.00, for a total transaction of $9,907,200.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 179,084 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $16,117,560. The trade was a 38.07 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. 0.29% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Lam Research Stock Up 4.6 %

Shares of NASDAQ LRCX opened at $78.69 on Friday. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $79.57 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $77.45. Lam Research Co. has a 12 month low of $68.87 and a 12 month high of $113.00. The company has a current ratio of 2.54, a quick ratio of 1.73 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51. The firm has a market capitalization of $101.01 billion, a PE ratio of 23.90, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.47 and a beta of 1.53.

Lam Research (NASDAQ:LRCX) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The semiconductor company reported $0.91 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.87 by $0.04. Lam Research had a net margin of 26.49% and a return on equity of 51.86%. Equities analysts expect that Lam Research Co. will post 3.71 earnings per share for the current year.

Lam Research Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 9th. Investors of record on Wednesday, March 5th will be given a dividend of $0.23 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, March 5th. This represents a $0.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.17%. Lam Research’s dividend payout ratio is presently 27.96%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have weighed in on LRCX. The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their target price on Lam Research from $96.00 to $85.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 10th. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on shares of Lam Research from $76.00 to $78.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 5th. Wolfe Research cut shares of Lam Research from an “outperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 15th. Cantor Fitzgerald restated an “overweight” rating and set a $100.00 price target on shares of Lam Research in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on Lam Research from $82.00 to $85.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seventeen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $98.22.

Lam Research Company Profile

Lam Research Corporation designs, manufactures, markets, refurbishes, and services semiconductor processing equipment used in the fabrication of integrated circuits. The company offers ALTUS systems to deposit conformal films for tungsten metallization applications; SABRE electrochemical deposition products for copper interconnect transition that offers copper damascene manufacturing; SOLA ultraviolet thermal processing products for film treatments; and VECTOR plasma-enhanced CVD ALD products.