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Lam Research (LRCX) Dips More Than Broader Markets: What You Should Know

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Lam Research (LRCX - Free Report) closed at $144.27 in the latest trading session, marking a -0.64% move from the prior day. This change lagged the S&P 500's 0.43% loss on the day. Elsewhere, the Dow lost 0.5%, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq added 0.26%.

Heading into today, shares of the semiconductor equipment maker had lost 6.49% over the past month, outpacing the Computer and Technology sector's loss of 6.53% and lagging the S&P 500's loss of 4.68% in that time.

Wall Street will be looking for positivity from LRCX as it approaches its next earnings report date. This is expected to be January 23, 2019. The company is expected to report EPS of $3.67, down 15.44% from the prior-year quarter. Our most recent consensus estimate is calling for quarterly revenue of $2.50 billion, down 3.09% from the year-ago period.

For the full year, our Zacks Consensus Estimates are projecting earnings of $14.37 per share and revenue of $9.95 billion, which would represent changes of -19.59% and -10.19%, respectively, from the prior year.

Investors might also notice recent changes to analyst estimates for LRCX. These recent revisions tend to reflect the evolving nature of short-term business trends. As such, positive estimate revisions reflect analyst optimism about the company's business and profitability.

Based on our research, we believe these estimate revisions are directly related to near-team stock moves. To benefit from this, we have developed the Zacks Rank, a proprietary model which takes these estimate changes into account and provides an actionable rating system.

The Zacks Rank system, which ranges from #1 (Strong Buy) to #5 (Strong Sell), has an impressive outside-audited track record of outperformance, with #1 stocks generating an average annual return of +25% since 1988. Within the past 30 days, our consensus EPS projection has moved 7.36% lower. LRCX currently has a Zacks Rank of #3 (Hold).

In terms of valuation, LRCX is currently trading at a Forward P/E ratio of 10.1. For comparison, its industry has an average Forward P/E of 10.02, which means LRCX is trading at a premium to the group.

Meanwhile, LRCX's PEG ratio is currently 0.84. This metric is used similarly to the famous P/E ratio, but the PEG ratio also takes into account the stock's expected earnings growth rate. The Semiconductor Equipment - Wafer Fabrication industry currently had an average PEG ratio of 0.97 as of yesterday's close.

The Semiconductor Equipment - Wafer Fabrication industry is part of the Computer and Technology sector. This group has a Zacks Industry Rank of 108, putting it in the top 42% of all 250+ industries.

The Zacks Industry Rank gauges the strength of our individual industry groups by measuring the average Zacks Rank of the individual stocks within the groups. Our research shows that the top 50% rated industries outperform the bottom half by a factor of 2 to 1.

To follow LRCX in the coming trading sessions, be sure to utilize Zacks.com.


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