Credit: Shutterstock photoLam Research (LRCX) closed the most recent trading day at $138.76, moving +0.22% from the previous trading session. This move outpaced the S&P 500's daily loss of 0.02%. Meanwhile, the Dow gained 0.29%, and the Nasdaq, a tech-heavy index, lost 0.39%.
Coming into today, shares of the semiconductor equipment maker had lost 3.01% in the past month. In that same time, the Computer and Technology sector gained 0.38%, while the S&P 500 lost 2.56%.
Investors will be hoping for strength from LRCX as it approaches its next earnings release, which 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. Meanwhile, our latest consensus estimate is calling for revenue of $2.50 billion, down 3.09% from the prior-year quarter.
Looking at the full year, our Zacks Consensus Estimates suggest analysts are expecting earnings of $14.37 per share and revenue of $9.95 billion. These totals would mark changes of -19.59% and -10.19%, respectively, from last year.
Investors should also note any recent changes to analyst estimates for LRCX. These recent revisions tend to reflect the evolving nature of short-term business trends. With this in mind, we can consider positive estimate revisions a sign of optimism about the company's business outlook.
Our research shows that these estimate changes are directly correlated with near-term stock prices. We developed the Zacks Rank to capitalize on this phenomenon. Our system takes these estimate changes into account and delivers a clear, actionable rating model.
The Zacks Rank system ranges from #1 (Strong Buy) to #5 (Strong Sell). It has a remarkable, outside-audited track record of success, with #1 stocks delivering an average annual return of +25% since 1988. Over the past month, the Zacks Consensus EPS estimate remained stagnant. LRCX is currently a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold).
Looking at its valuation, LRCX is holding a Forward P/E ratio of 9.64. Its industry sports an average Forward P/E of 9.67, so we one might conclude that LRCX is trading at a discount comparatively.
Also, we should mention that LRCX has a PEG ratio of 0.8. The PEG ratio is similar to the widely-used P/E ratio, but this metric also takes the company's expected earnings growth rate into account. Semiconductor Equipment - Wafer Fabrication stocks are, on average, holding a PEG ratio of 1.13 based on yesterday's closing prices.
The Semiconductor Equipment - Wafer Fabrication industry is part of the Computer and Technology sector. This group has a Zacks Industry Rank of 235, putting it in the bottom 9% 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.
Make sure to utilize Zacks. Com to follow all of these stock-moving metrics, and more, in the coming trading sessions.
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The views and opinions expressed herein are the views and opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc.
The views and opinions expressed herein are the views and opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc.
