Lam Research (NASDAQ:LRCX) Trading 2.5% Higher After Analyst Upgrade

Shares of Lam Research Corporation (NASDAQ:LRCX) shot up 2.5% during trading on Friday after Wells Fargo & Company upgraded the stock from an equal weight rating to an overweight rating. Wells Fargo & Company now has a $250.00 price target on the stock, up from their previous price target of $145.00. Lam Research traded as high as $225.69 and last traded at $222.96. 14,347,767 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 4% from the average session volume of 14,916,134 shares. The stock had previously closed at $217.47.

LRCX has been the subject of several other research reports. Wall Street Zen downgraded Lam Research from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, November 8th. HSBC increased their price objective on Lam Research from $127.00 to $181.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, January 9th. Royal Bank Of Canada set a $260.00 target price on Lam Research in a report on Wednesday. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their price objective on Lam Research from $160.00 to $195.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, December 19th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald restated an “overweight” rating and set a $265.00 price target (up previously from $210.00) on shares of Lam Research in a report on Thursday, January 8th. Twenty-eight equities 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 currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $189.55.

Insider Activity

In other Lam Research news, Director Bethany Mayer sold 1,298 shares of Lam Research stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $159.99, for a total transaction of $207,667.02. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 1,652 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $264,303.48. This trade represents a 44.00% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Ava Harter sold 9,010 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, October 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $157.47, for a total transaction of $1,418,804.70. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 56,786 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,942,091.42. This trade represents a 13.69% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last three months, insiders have sold 50,418 shares of company stock worth $7,667,305. 0.31% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Key Headlines Impacting Lam Research

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

• Positive Sentiment: TSMC’s $52–$56 billion 2026 CapEx roadmap is highlighted as a direct driver of equipment demand for 2nm/3D chip builds — Lam Research is named specifically for cryogenic etching used in vertical stacking. The $56 Billion Draft: Follow TSMC’s CapEx Stream
• Positive Sentiment: Coverage highlighting TSMC’s $56B AI bet lists Lam among the primary beneficiaries, reinforcing the narrative that foundry CapEx flows directly to equipment suppliers. TSMC’s $56B AI Bet Just Made These 3 Stocks Millionaire Makers
• Positive Sentiment: Multiple sell‑side firms (Wells Fargo, RBC, Stifel, BofA, Rothschild/Redburn) raised ratings and price targets — several to ~$245–$250 — signaling stronger consensus forward estimates and supporting a higher valuation. Wells Fargo upgrade / The Fly
• Positive Sentiment: Industry press (Barron’s, Seeking Alpha) links broad chip-stock strength to TSMC’s spending — reinforcing sector momentum that benefits Lam as an essential equipment vendor. ASML, Lam Research, Applied Materials Surge
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst research/upgrades (Seeking Alpha write-up and Zacks pieces) increase earnings and free-cash-flow expectations based on a wafer‑fab-equipment (WFE) “supercycle,” which supports upward revisions to LRCX valuation models. Lam Research: Why The WFE Supercycle Changes The Valuation (Rating Upgrade)
• Neutral Sentiment: Momentum and style-score stories (Zacks) reiterate LRCX’s growth traits — useful for investor positioning but less likely to move price than large-capital orders or formal guidance changes. Here’s Why Lam Research (LRCX) is a Strong Growth Stock

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Lam Research

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of LRCX. PMV Capital Advisers LLC bought a new stake in Lam Research in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Stance Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of Lam Research in the third quarter worth $26,000. Triumph Capital Management bought a new stake in Lam Research during the 3rd quarter valued at $27,000. Harbor Investment Advisory LLC boosted its position in Lam Research by 73.9% during the 4th quarter. Harbor Investment Advisory LLC now owns 240 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $41,000 after buying an additional 102 shares during the period. Finally, IMG Wealth Management Inc. bought a new stake in Lam Research in the 2nd quarter worth $26,000. Institutional investors own 84.61% of the company’s stock.

Lam Research Price Performance

The stock has a market cap of $280.04 billion, a PE ratio of 49.11, a PEG ratio of 2.56 and a beta of 1.77. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $171.60 and its 200-day simple moving average is $137.26. The company has a quick ratio of 1.60, a current ratio of 2.21 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37.

Lam Research (NASDAQ:LRCX) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, October 22nd. The semiconductor company reported $1.26 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.22 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $5.32 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.23 billion. Lam Research had a return on equity of 60.60% and a net margin of 29.66%.Lam Research’s quarterly revenue was up 27.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.86 earnings per share. Lam Research has set its Q2 2026 guidance at 1.050-1.250 EPS. On average, research analysts expect that Lam Research Corporation will post 3.71 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Lam Research Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, January 7th. Investors of record on Wednesday, December 3rd were paid a $0.26 dividend. 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 0.5%. Lam Research’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 22.91%.

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.