Lam Research Corp. (NASDAQ:LRCX)

Price to Earnings (P/E) Ratio

The Price to Earnings ratio shows a fluctuating but generally declining trend from late 2018 through mid-2022. Starting with values around 13.64 in early recorded periods, it rose to peaks above 24 during late 2019 and 2020, indicating increased investor expectations relative to earnings. However, from mid-2021 onwards, this ratio decreased, reaching lows near 10.51 by mid-2022, suggesting either increased earnings or a drop in market price. Following that period, the ratio again increased, peaking above 33 in late 2023 and early 2024 before moderating back to around 19.61 by late 2024. This volatility points to varying market sentiment and earnings performance over the years.

Price to Operating Profit (P/OP) Ratio

The Price to Operating Profit ratio mirrors several fluctuations observed in the P/E ratio, with early values absent but becoming available around late 2018. It peaked near 20.4 in late 2019 and again reached levels above 21 in early 2021. A decline followed, bottoming near 8.94 in mid-2022, reflecting improved operating profits or reduced stock price at that time. Afterward, the ratio rose sharply, exceeding 30 in late 2023 and early 2024 before easing to the high teens by late 2024. These movements indicate changing valuations in relation to operating earnings and suggest cyclical dynamics in profitability or market valuation.

Price to Sales (P/S) Ratio

The Price to Sales ratio generally increased from early recorded data, with peaks observed around 6.86 in mid-2021 and subsequent dips to nearly 2.83 in mid-2022, demonstrating significant variability in the market valuation relative to revenue. The post-mid-2022 period shows a recovery in this ratio, with values spiking to approximately 8.53 by late 2023 and then declining toward mid-range levels around 5.33 by late 2024. This pattern illustrates shifts in investor willingness to pay for sales, possibly due to changing margins or revenue growth expectations.

Price to Book Value (P/BV) Ratio

The Price to Book Value ratio displays a general upward trajectory from early data points at around 4.27 in late 2018 through to peaks exceeding 16 in late 2020 and early 2021. Following these highs, the ratio shows a consistent decrease reaching lows near 6.88 in mid-2022. Subsequently, it increases again toward 15.14 in early 2024 before settling near 9.61 by late 2024. This indicates varying investor confidence in the company’s net asset value and possibly changing book values through the periods analyzed.

Summary of Trends

Across all valuation multiples, a pronounced cycle emerges with ratios rising to highs primarily between late 2019 and early 2021, followed by declines reaching troughs around mid-2022. These troughs potentially reflect operational or market challenges, after which recovery periods lead to new peaks in late 2023 or early 2024 before ratios stabilize or moderate again by late 2024. The substantial volatility in these financial ratios suggests sensitivity to both company performance metrics—earnings, operating profit, sales, and book value—and broader market conditions impacting valuation. Investors appear to have periodically recalibrated expectations concerning profitability and asset valuation over the analyzed timeframe.

Share Price Trends

The share price showed a generally increasing trend from September 2018 through December 2020, rising from $14.64 to a peak of $63.81 in March 2021. Following this peak, the price experienced some volatility, including a decline to $37.40 in September 2022. Since then, the price showed a recovery trend, reaching a new high of $92.88 in December 2023 before decreasing slightly in the subsequent quarters, ending at $71.42 in March 2025. This pattern suggests periods of strong market optimism interspersed with corrections.

Earnings per Share (EPS) Trends

EPS data, available from March 2019 onward, show a consistent upward trend from $1.52 in March 2019 to a peak of $3.80 in March 2023. After this peak, EPS declined to $2.64 in December 2023, followed by a recovery phase that ended at $3.64 in March 2025. This indicates a phase of robust earnings growth over several years, with a temporary slowdown and subsequent rebound.

Price-to-Earnings (P/E) Ratio Trends

The P/E ratio demonstrated variability across the periods analyzed. Initially around 13.64 in March 2019, it increased to a high of 26.3 in June 2021, indicating rising market valuation relative to earnings. The ratio then fell to a low of 10.51 in September 2022, suggesting earnings growth outpaced share price increases during that interval. Following this, the ratio climbed sharply, reaching 33.64 in December 2023, reflecting elevated market expectations or share price growth relative to earnings. The ratio subsequently decreased to 19.61 by March 2025.

Overall Insights

The data reveals a company with strong earnings growth over multiple years, especially from 2019 to early 2023. Share prices largely mirrored this improving earnings performance but with greater volatility, likely influenced by market factors beyond earnings alone. The P/E fluctuations imply changing investor sentiment and valuation levels, with periods where the stock price was relatively expensive compared to earnings, interspersed with times when valuation was more conservative. The recovery in both share price and EPS after declines suggests resilience and potential growth prospects maintained market support into early 2025.

The analysis of the quarterly financial data reveals several notable trends in share price, operating profit per share, and the price-to-operating profit (P/OP) ratio over the periods from September 2018 through March 2025.

Share Price Trends

The share price exhibits an overall upward trajectory with some fluctuations. Starting at $14.64 in September 2018, it increased substantially, reaching a peak around $92.88 in December 2023. The share price displayed variability, declining to $37.4 in September 2022 before recovering and hitting subsequent highs in late 2023 and early 2024. From the peak in late 2023, there was a downward adjustment in 2024 and early 2025, settling near $71.42 by March 2025, marking some volatility after a prolonged ascent.

Operating Profit Per Share

Operating profit per share data is available starting March 2019, with an initial value of $1.71. There is a consistent upward trend in operating profits per share through most of the timeline, rising to a high of $4.48 by March 2023. Following this peak, a downward correction is observed, decreasing to $2.96 by December 2023. Subsequently, the figure shows signs of recovery, increasing to $4.13 by March 2025. This pattern suggests strong earnings growth with periods of volatility, particularly around late 2023.

Price-to-Operating Profit (P/OP) Ratio

The P/OP ratio exhibits considerable variability, indicating fluctuating market valuations relative to operating profits per share. Initially unavailable, it begins at 12.13 in September 2019 and reaches lower figures around 8.94 in September 2022, coinciding with a trough in share price. However, the ratio rises sharply to a peak of 30.42 in December 2023, implying high market valuation relative to earnings during this period. Afterward, the ratio declines somewhat, settling at 17.28 by March 2025, reflecting a more normalized valuation compared to peak levels.

Interrelationship of Metrics

The rising operating profit per share generally supports the increases observed in share price, especially during the growth phases between 2019 and early 2023. The spikes in the P/OP ratio, particularly in late 2023, suggest that share prices increased at a faster pace than operating profits, potentially indicating speculative behavior or market optimism at that time. The subsequent correction in both share price and P/OP ratio indicates a market adjustment toward more sustainable valuations. The gradual recovery of operating profit per share towards March 2025 offers potential for renewed investor confidence and stabilization of valuations.

The analysis of the quarterly financial data reveals several noteworthy trends in share price, sales per share, and the price-to-sales (P/S) ratio over the observed periods.

Share Price

The share price exhibits a general upward trajectory from September 2018 through December 2023, moving from $14.64 to a peak of $84.58. This increase is characterized by periods of rapid growth, particularly from late 2019 to late 2020 and again in 2023. However, there are phases of volatility, including notable declines such as from March 2021 ($63.81) to September 2022 ($37.40). More recent data indicates continued fluctuations, with the share price decreasing towards June 2024 ($79.73) and further to September 2024 ($71.42).

Sales per Share

Sales per share data is available starting from March 2019, showing a consistent increase from $6.56 to $14.12 by March 2023. This growth trajectory suggests improving sales efficiency or revenue generation capabilities on a per-share basis. Following this peak, sales per share saw a decline until December 2023 ($10.92), followed by a modest recovery to $13.40 by March 2025. The general trend indicates strong growth initially, with some recent moderation.

Price-to-Sales (P/S) Ratio

The P/S ratio shows considerable variability, reflecting changes in market valuation relative to sales. Initially reported at 3.1 in March 2019, the ratio peaked at 8.53 by December 2023, indicating periods where share price growth outpaced sales per share growth. Notably, the P/S ratio experienced large fluctuations, dropping from highs above 6.0 in late 2020 to lows near 3.68 in December 2021, then surging again toward late 2023. This volatility suggests investor sentiment and market dynamics have significantly influenced valuation multiples.

Overall, the data suggests strong shareholder value appreciation driven by rising share prices and sales per share growth. Nonetheless, the varying P/S ratios highlight changing market perceptions of value relative to underlying sales performance, marking phases of both premium and discounted valuation environments.

The share price demonstrates notable fluctuations over the observed periods. Initially, there is a steady increase from $14.64 in September 2018 to a peak of $63.81 by March 2021. This is followed by a decline to $37.4 in September 2022. Subsequently, the share price recovers again, reaching $92.88 in December 2023 before a gradual downward correction occurs toward $71.42 by March 2025.

Book value per share (BVPS) shows a general upward trend throughout the timeline. From $3.43 in September 2018, BVPS rises moderately with some minor fluctuations, reaching $7.44 by March 2025. This steady increase in book value per share indicates ongoing accumulation of net assets relative to shares outstanding.

The Price-to-Book Value (P/BV) ratio displays considerable volatility reflective of the share price movements in relation to the book value. Starting at 4.27 in September 2018, the ratio increases significantly to peak at 16.94 in March 2021, pointing to potentially elevated market valuations relative to book value at that time. Afterward, the ratio decreases to 6.88 by September 2022, in line with falling share prices, before climbing again near 15.14 in December 2023. In the final periods, the P/BV ratio trends downward gradually, settling around 9.61 by March 2025, indicating a moderation in the premium investors are willing to pay over book value.

Overall, the data depicts a cycle of rising market optimism and valuation through early 2021, followed by a correction phase, and a subsequent recovery and stabilization phase by early 2025. The book value exhibits consistent growth, supporting the assumption of strengthening fundamental net asset value, whereas the P/BV ratio reflects fluctuating market sentiment and valuation levels over the observed periods.