Lam Research Corp (LRCX)

Price$307.16Cached quoteAs of 2026-09-25 03:20 UTC

AI: Overvalued

Price checkLam’s growth is exceptional, but today’s price requires unusually strong earnings expansion to continue.

Lam Research closed at $307.17 on August 19, 2026, the latest completed session before this research time. Fiscal 2026 diluted earnings were $5.76 per share, putting the stock near 53 times earnings. Even annualizing September-quarter guidance of $2.15 per share gives about $8.60 and a still-rich 36 times earnings. Fiscal 2026 free cash flow, meaning operating cash after capital spending, was about $4.89 billion versus an approximately $384 billion market value, only a 1.3% cash yield. That offers little value-investor margin of safety.

Big pictureArtificial-intelligence spending is driving record sales and margins, but semiconductor equipment remains a deeply cyclical business.

Fiscal 2026 revenue surged 26% to $23.23 billion, while net income rose 36% to $7.27 billion and operating margin reached 35.3%. The June quarter accelerated further: revenue climbed 30% from a year earlier to $6.72 billion, with operating margin at 37.4%. Lam benefits from more complex memory and advanced chip manufacturing, especially deposition and etch steps. Still, equipment spending moves in cycles as chipmakers add or pause factories. China also represented 26% of June-quarter revenue, creating meaningful exposure to export restrictions and geopolitical policy changes.

Business strengthLam has a net-cash balance sheet and huge margins, while buybacks comfortably offset employee share dilution.

At June 28, Lam held $5.58 billion of cash against $3.73 billion of debt, leaving about $1.85 billion of net cash. Current assets of $15.61 billion were more than twice current liabilities of $5.94 billion. Fiscal 2026 operating cash flow was $5.86 billion despite substantial working-capital investment. Lam spent $3.85 billion on buybacks and $1.27 billion on dividends, slightly more than free cash flow. Shares outstanding fell about 1.4% year over year, while stock compensation totaled $386 million, so dilution remains well controlled.

What could change the storyFaster memory and advanced-chip investment could support the premium, while any spending slowdown would expose substantial downside.

The strongest bull case is accelerating artificial-intelligence infrastructure. Lam guides the September quarter to $8.1 billion of revenue, about 20% above June, with 39.5% operating margin and $2.15 of earnings per share. Rising three-dimensional memory complexity and advanced logic require more of Lam’s equipment. The bear case is valuation and cyclicality: even that extraordinary earnings run rate implies roughly 36 times earnings. If semiconductor capital spending normalizes and annual earnings growth falls toward 10%, a valuation closer to 22-25 times earnings would imply materially lower value than today’s price.

AI: News

Record quarter and outlookLam posted record results and forecast another major revenue jump as artificial-intelligence chip investment accelerated.

On July 29, 2026, Lam reported June-quarter revenue of $6.72 billion, up 30% from a year earlier, and adjusted earnings of $1.82 per share. It guided the September quarter to $8.1 billion of revenue and $2.15 of earnings per share, both well above contemporary analyst expectations. The shares rose about 7.8% in premarket trading on July 30. The strong reaction is consistent with the earnings beat and guidance, though broader semiconductor sentiment also affects the stock.

China shipments restrictedNew United States restrictions threatened equipment sales to a major Chinese chipmaker, highlighting Lam’s unusually large China exposure.

On April 28, 2026, Reuters reported that the U.S. Commerce Department ordered Lam and other equipment suppliers to halt certain shipments to Hua Hong and related facilities over advanced-chip concerns. The exact revenue impact was not disclosed. The risk is material because China represented 26% of Lam’s June-quarter revenue. Tighter licensing can directly remove equipment sales or delay customer projects, making geopolitical policy one of the clearest company-specific threats to otherwise strong artificial-intelligence and memory demand.

United States expansion plansLam is expanding near major American chip factories while adding artificial intelligence directly into manufacturing tools.

On May 21, 2026, Chief Executive Tim Archer told Reuters that Lam was developing more sensor-rich, artificial-intelligence-enabled manufacturing equipment and expanding its United States footprint, including a facility near TSMC’s Phoenix operations. Reuters said Lam had spent more than $45 million on an Arizona building. The strategy could deepen relationships with rapidly expanding domestic chipmakers and improve manufacturing yields for customers. A reliable standalone stock-price reaction was not established, so the event is more important for future competitive positioning than immediate price attribution.

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Financial statements

	2026	2025	2024	2023	2022	2021	2020	2019	2018	2017	2016	2015	2014	2013	2012	2011	2010	2009
Revenue	$23.23B	$18.44B	$14.91B	$17.43B	$17.23B	$14.63B	$10.04B	$9.65B	$11.08B	$8.01B	$5.89B	$5.26B	$4.61B	$3.60B	$2.67B	$3.24B	$2.13B	$1.12B
Gross profit	$11.73B	$8.98B	$7.05B	$7.78B	$7.87B	$6.81B	$4.61B	$4.36B	$5.17B	$3.60B	$2.62B	$2.28B	$2.01B	$1.40B	$1.08B	$1.50B	$969.9M	$388.7M
Gross margin	50.47%	48.71%	47.32%	44.62%	45.69%	46.53%	45.88%	45.15%	46.63%	44.97%	44.49%	43.43%	43.57%	38.99%	40.68%	46.24%	45.46%	34.83%
Research & development	$2.38B	$2.10B	$1.90B	$1.73B	$1.60B	$1.49B	$1.25B	$1.19B	$1.19B	$1.03B	$913.7M	$825.2M	$716.5M	$683.7M	$444.6M	$373.3M	$320.9M	$288.3M
Operating expenses	$3.53B	$3.08B	$2.79B	$2.60B	$2.49B	$2.32B	$1.93B	$1.89B	$1.95B	$1.70B	$1.54B	$1.50B	$1.33B	$1.28B	$846.3M	$692.9M	$544.5M	$670.0M
Operating income	$8.20B	$5.90B	$4.26B	$5.17B	$5.38B	$4.48B	$2.67B	$2.46B	$3.21B	$1.90B	$1.07B	$788.0M	$677.7M	$118.1M	$237.7M	$804.3M	$425.4M	−$281.2M
Operating margin	35.29%	32.01%	28.61%	29.69%	31.24%	30.64%	26.62%	25.53%	29.01%	23.74%	18.25%	14.98%	14.71%	3.28%	8.92%	24.84%	19.94%	−25.20%
EBITDA	$8.64B	$6.29B	$4.62B	$5.52B	$5.72B	$4.79B	$2.94B	$2.77B	$3.54B	$2.21B	$1.37B	$1.07B	$969.9M	$422.2M	$338.6M	$879.0M	$496.8M	−$208.8M
EBITDA margin	37.19%	34.10%	31.02%	31.66%	33.18%	32.74%	29.29%	28.74%	31.96%	27.57%	23.20%	20.27%	21.05%	11.73%	12.70%	27.15%	23.28%	−18.71%
Net income	$7.27B	$5.36B	$3.83B	$4.51B	$4.61B	$3.91B	$2.25B	$2.19B	$2.38B	$1.70B	$914.0M	$655.6M	$632.3M	$113.9M	$168.7M	$723.7M	$346.7M	−$302.1M
Net profit margin	31.27%	29.06%	25.68%	25.88%	26.73%	26.72%	22.42%	22.70%	21.49%	21.19%	15.53%	12.47%	13.72%	3.16%	6.33%	22.35%	16.25%	−27.08%
Basic EPSper basic share	$5.79	$4.17	$2.91	$3.33	$3.29	$2.72	$1.56	$1.44	$1.47	$1.05	$0.58	$0.41	$0.38	$0.07	$0.14	$0.59	$0.27	-$0.24
Diluted EPSper diluted share	$5.76	$4.15	$2.90	$3.32	$3.28	$2.69	$1.51	$1.37	$1.32	$0.92	$0.52	$0.37	$0.36	$0.07	$0.14	$0.58	$0.27	-$0.24

Review official source filings ↗

Owners

Reported shareholders

Reference date Jun 30, 2026

≈10.61%of listed shares

BlackRock, Inc.132.73M shares · Jun 30, 2026

View holders

Top 20 reported holders of LRCX
Holder	% owned
BlackRock, Inc.	≈10.61%132.73M shares
VANGUARD CAPITAL MANAGEMENT LLC	≈6.53%81.68M shares
STATE STREET CORP	≈4.85%60.7M shares
Invesco Ltd.	≈4.18%52.32M shares
JPMORGAN CHASE & CO	≈3.62%45.32M shares
VANGUARD PORTFOLIO MANAGEMENT LLC	≈2.93%36.64M shares
GEODE CAPITAL MANAGEMENT, LLC	≈2.76%34.51M shares
FMR LLC	≈2.69%33.68M shares
PRICE T ROWE ASSOCIATES INC /MD/	≈1.97%24.6M shares
MORGAN STANLEY	≈1.54%19.22M shares
NORGES BANK	≈1.45%18.12M shares
AMERIPRISE FINANCIAL INC	≈1.39%17.33M shares
NORTHERN TRUST CORP	≈1.12%14.01M shares
FRANKLIN RESOURCES INC	≈1.04%13.07M shares
GOLDMAN SACHS GROUP INC	≈1.02%12.72M shares
UBS AM, a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC	≈1.00%12.51M shares
ARROWSTREET CAPITAL, LIMITED PARTNERSHIP	≈0.98%12.27M shares
BANK OF AMERICA CORP /DE/	≈0.90%11.24M shares
VAN ECK ASSOCIATES CORP	≈0.89%11.09M shares
Legal & General Group Plc	≈0.83%10.37M shares

Percentages use 1.25B shares of this listed class outstanding on Jun 28, 2026. ≈ compares the latest reported holding with a share total from a different date; it is not a confirmed current stake.

Gray completes the 100% scale. Reported positions may overlap; holders have different reporting dates.

Source: SEC Form 13F ↗Updated Sep 29, 2026 · Quarterly data

Insider buys & sells

Jul 1, 2024–Jun 30, 2026

Buys1$602.2236 disclosed value

Sells (SEC code S)111$167.68M disclosed value

Transaction	Insider	Type	Shares	Price	Value	Owned after
Jun 12, 2026Form 4 · 10b5-1	BRANDT ERICDirector	SellCommon Stock	1.6K	$373.09	$596.9K	144.7K
Jun 12, 2026Form 4 · 10b5-1	BRANDT ERICDirector	SellCommon Stock	7.7K	$372.23	$2.87M	146.3K
Jun 12, 2026Form 4 · 10b5-1	BRANDT ERICDirector	SellCommon Stock	8.2K	$371.17	$3.06M	154.0K
Jun 12, 2026Form 4 · 10b5-1	BRANDT ERICDirector	SellCommon Stock	5.0K	$370.27	$1.87M	162.2K
Jun 12, 2026Form 4 · 10b5-1	BRANDT ERICDirector	SellCommon Stock	4.2K	$369.16	$1.55M	167.3K

Review ownership filings at SEC.gov ↗

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