Shares of semiconductor equipment maker Lam Research fell Thursday after the company delivered December-quarter results that edged above expectations for earnings but missed views on sales. It also guided lower for the current period. LRCX stock dropped nearly 7%.
Late Wednesday, Fremont, Calif.-based Lam said it earned an adjusted $8.53 a share on sales of $4.23 billion in its fiscal second quarter ended Dec. 26. Analysts had forecast Lam earnings of $8.52 a share on sales of $4.42 billion, according to FactSet. On a year-over-year basis, Lam earnings rose 41% while sales climbed 22%.
"Lam delivered record calendar year 2021 financial performance within a robust wafer fabrication spending environment," Chief Executive Tim Archer said in a news release.
He added, "While supply chain conditions worsened in late December and are causing near-term impacts to our results, we expect wafer fabrication equipment investments to again increase in calendar year 2022, leading to another strong growth year for Lam."
LRCX Stock Falls On Weak Outlook
For the current quarter, Lam expects to earn an adjusted $7.45 a share on sales of $4.25 billion. Wall Street had predicted earnings of $8.72 a share on sales of $4.49 billion.
On the stock market today, LRCX stock dropped 6.9% to close at 555.30. During the regular session Wednesday, its shares rose 1.4% to close at 596.67.
Teradyne, MKS Tumble
Other chip gear makers posting quarterly results late Wednesday included Teradyne and MKS Instruments.
Both Teradyne and MKS beat sales and earnings targets for the fourth quarter, but disappointed with their first-quarter guidance.
Teradyne stock plummeted 22.4% to close at 111.24 on Thursday. MKS stock sank 7.9% to 145.45.
LRCX stock ranks 10th out of 32 stocks in IBD's Semiconductor Equipment industry group, according to IBD Stock Checkup. Lam Research has an IBD Composite Rating of 87 out of 99. Teradyne stock ranks No. 17 and MKS Instruments ranks No. 16 in the group.
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