Stock Traders Buy High Volume of Put Options on Lam Research (NASDAQ:LRCX)

Lam Research Corporation (NASDAQ:LRCX) was the target of some unusual options trading on Tuesday. Traders purchased 56,347 put options on the company. This represents an increase of approximately 33% compared to the average daily volume of 42,252 put options.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Eric Brandt sold 54,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $350.80, for a total value of $19,118,600.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 199,205 shares in the company, valued at approximately $69,881,114. This trade represents a 21.48% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, SVP Neil J. Fernandes sold 7,659 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $309.60, for a total value of $2,371,226.40. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president owned 58,470 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $18,102,312. This trade represents a 11.58% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 86,339 shares of company stock worth $27,680,267. 0.31% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. GSG Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Lam Research by 3.1% in the 1st quarter. GSG Advisors LLC now owns 1,387 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $296,000 after acquiring an additional 42 shares in the last quarter. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Lam Research by 7.9% in the 1st quarter. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 589 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $126,000 after purchasing an additional 43 shares during the last quarter. Greenup Street Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Lam Research by 1.8% in the 1st quarter. Greenup Street Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,433 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $520,000 after purchasing an additional 44 shares during the last quarter. Triumph Capital Management lifted its holdings in shares of Lam Research by 22.5% in the 4th quarter. Triumph Capital Management now owns 245 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $42,000 after purchasing an additional 45 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Traphagen Investment Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Lam Research by 2.4% in the 4th quarter. Traphagen Investment Advisors LLC now owns 1,963 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $336,000 after purchasing an additional 46 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 84.61% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Berenberg Bank increased their target price on Lam Research from $265.00 to $335.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on Lam Research from $300.00 to $315.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 23rd. Cantor Fitzgerald set a $425.00 target price on Lam Research and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 10th. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $300.00 target price on shares of Lam Research in a research note on Thursday, April 23rd. Finally, Erste Group Bank lowered Lam Research from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 2nd. Twenty-eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $333.62.

Lam Research Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ LRCX opened at $374.18 on Thursday. Lam Research has a fifty-two week low of $87.75 and a fifty-two week high of $397.63. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $295.60 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $238.88. The company has a quick ratio of 1.77, a current ratio of 2.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35. The firm has a market cap of $467.94 billion, a PE ratio of 70.60, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.04 and a beta of 1.85.

Lam Research (NASDAQ:LRCX) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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. Lam Research had a return on equity of 66.21% and a net margin of 30.94%.The firm had revenue of $5.84 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.70 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.04 EPS. Lam Research’s quarterly revenue was up 23.8% on a year-over-year basis. Lam Research has set its Q4 2026 guidance at 1.500-1.800 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that Lam Research will post 5.7 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Lam Research Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 8th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, June 17th will be paid a dividend of $0.26 per share. This represents a $1.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.3%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, June 17th. Lam Research’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 19.62%.

Key Headlines Impacting Lam Research

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

• Positive Sentiment: Rothschild & Co Redburn raised its price target on Lam Research to $420 from $305 and reiterated a buy rating, signaling confidence in further upside. MarketScreener article on Rothschild & Co Redburn target raise
• Positive Sentiment: Citi also boosted its Lam Research price target to $450 from $315, citing booming wafer fab equipment demand and stronger forecast assumptions for the semiconductor capital spending cycle. Yahoo/Investing.com article on Citi target hike
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst and market commentary continue to point to strong memory-equipment demand and AI-driven packaging growth as key growth catalysts for Lam Research. Motley Fool article on memory stock and Lam Research growth
• Positive Sentiment: Multiple articles describe Lam Research as a profitable, high-quality growth stock, which supports investor enthusiasm around its earnings power and premium valuation. Insider Monkey article on most profitable American stocks
• Neutral Sentiment: There was also insider selling by a director under a pre-arranged 10b5-1 plan, which is notable but not necessarily a negative signal. SEC filing for director share sale
• Neutral Sentiment: The broader chip-equipment group is rallying with Intel’s manufacturing update lifting sentiment across semiconductor stocks, adding sector tailwinds for LRCX. Yahoo/Investing.com article on chip stocks rebound

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.