Meiji Yasuda Life Insurance Co significantly increased its stake in Lam Research Co. (NASDAQ:LRCX) during the fourth quarter, as revealed in the company’s most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The insurance firm boosted its position in the semiconductor company by 860.3%, resulting in a total of 16,200 shares valued at $1,170,000.
This substantial increase in holdings was part of a broader trend among institutional investors. Other financial entities, such as Fairway Wealth LLC, Financial Perspectives Inc, Atwood & Palmer Inc., West Paces Advisors Inc., and Midwest Capital Advisors LLC, also acquired or increased their stakes in Lam Research during the same period.
Institutional Investment Trends
The surge in institutional investment in Lam Research reflects growing interest in the semiconductor sector. As of the latest filings, institutional investors collectively own 84.61% of Lam Research’s stock.
Financial Performance and Analyst Ratings
Lam Research’s financial performance has been robust, with the company reporting earnings per share (EPS) of $1.04 for the quarter ending in April, surpassing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.00. The company’s revenue for the quarter was $4.72 billion, exceeding expectations of $4.64 billion. This strong performance contributed to a 24.4% year-over-year increase in revenue.
Analysts have responded positively to Lam Research’s performance. Several equities research firms, including The Goldman Sachs Group, Jefferies Financial Group, Bank of America, and Stifel Nicolaus, have issued ‘buy’ ratings on the stock, although Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft assigned a ‘hold’ rating. The average price target among analysts is $91.56, with a ‘Moderate Buy’ consensus rating.
Dividend and Stock Performance
Lam Research recently declared a quarterly dividend of $0.23 per share, paid on April 9th to investors of record as of March 5th. The company’s stock opened at $74.52 on Friday, with a market capitalization of $95.32 billion. The stock has shown a 3.9% increase in trading.
Insider Activity
In related news, SVP Seshasayee Varadarajan sold 110,080 shares of Lam Research stock on February 20th at an average price of $90.00, reducing his holdings by 38.07%. Company insiders collectively own 0.29% of the company’s stock.
Company Profile
Lam Research Corporation designs, manufactures, and services semiconductor processing equipment used in the fabrication of integrated circuits. The company’s product portfolio includes ALTUS systems for tungsten metallization, SABRE electrochemical deposition products for copper interconnects, and VECTOR plasma-enhanced CVD ALD products.
