Summary

Lam Research Corp. supplies wafer fabrication equipment and services that are vital to semiconductor production, so changes in its business tend to be closely tied to chipmakers’ capital spending plans rather than to consumer demand alone. The company offers a range of products used in thin-film deposition, plasma etch, photoresist strip, and wafer cleaning processes. Lam has grown its SAM to about 34% of total industry spending, underscoring its role in a part of the supply chain that matters well beyond one product cycle.

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James Kelleher, CFA
Director of Research & Senior Analyst, Technology

Jim has worked in the financial services industry for more than 25 years and joined Argus in 1993. He is director of research at Argus and a member of the Investment Policy Committee. Kelleher has been instrumental in building Argus' proprietary valuation models, which are a key part of the proprietary Argus Six-Point Rating System. He also oversees Argus' technical analysis products, writes the Portfolio Selector report and other publications, and manages several Argus model portfolios.

As a senior analyst, Jim covers Communications Equipment, Semiconductors, Information Processing, and Electronic Manufacturing Services companies. He is a CFA charter-holder and a three-time winner in The Wall Street Journal's "Best on the Street" All-Star Analyst Survey. In July 2010, McGraw-Hill Professional published his book, "Equity Valuation for Analysts & Investors." The book is a single-volume treatment of the financial modeling and valuation process and introduces the Argus proprietary valuation methodology known as Peer Derived Value.