Lam Research (LRCX) ended the recent trading session at $133.90, demonstrating a +2.14% change from the preceding day's closing price. The stock outperformed the S&P 500, which registered a daily gain of 0.41%. Meanwhile, the Dow gained 0.18%, and the Nasdaq, a tech-heavy index, added 0.31%.
Heading into today, shares of the semiconductor equipment maker had gained 30.89% over the past month, outpacing the Computer and Technology sector's gain of 7.63% and the S&P 500's gain of 3.15%.
The investment community will be paying close attention to the earnings performance of Lam Research in its upcoming release. The company is predicted to post an EPS of $1.21, indicating a 40.7% growth compared to the equivalent quarter last year. Meanwhile, the latest consensus estimate predicts the revenue to be $5.22 billion, indicating a 25.22% increase compared to the same quarter of the previous year.
For the annual period, the Zacks Consensus Estimates anticipate earnings of $4.5 per share and a revenue of $19.95 billion, signifying shifts of +8.7% and +8.19%, respectively, from the last year.
Investors might also notice recent changes to analyst estimates for Lam Research. These recent revisions tend to reflect the evolving nature of short-term business trends. Consequently, upward revisions in estimates express analysts' positivity towards the business operations and its ability to generate profits.
Research indicates that these estimate revisions are directly correlated with near-term share price momentum. To exploit this, we've formed the Zacks Rank, a quantitative model that includes these estimate changes and presents a viable rating system.
Ranging from #1 (Strong Buy) to #5 (Strong Sell), the Zacks Rank system has a proven, outside-audited track record of outperformance, with #1 stocks returning an average of +25% annually since 1988. Over the past month, the Zacks Consensus EPS estimate has moved 1.96% higher. Lam Research is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).
Investors should also note Lam Research's current valuation metrics, including its Forward P/E ratio of 29.11. This valuation marks a discount compared to its industry average Forward P/E of 36.47.
Meanwhile, LRCX's PEG ratio is currently 1.65. 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 average PEG ratio for the Electronics - Semiconductors industry stood at 1.97 at the close of the market yesterday.
The Electronics - Semiconductors industry is part of the Computer and Technology sector. This industry currently has a Zacks Industry Rank of 174, which puts it in the bottom 30% of all 250+ industries.
The Zacks Industry Rank gauges the strength of our 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.
Don't forget to use Zacks.com to keep track of all these stock-moving metrics, and others, in the upcoming trading sessions.
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Lam Research Corporation (LRCX): Free Stock Analysis ReportThis article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).
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