We recently compiled a list of the 30 Best Stocks To Invest In According to Billionaires. In this article, we are going to take a look at where Lam Research Corporation (NASDAQ:LRCX) stands against the other stocks.
Billionaires and top hedge fund managers dominate the market with large investments in leading companies with strong track records and exceptional performance. These investors have large capital and they like to invest in established companies rather than betting on underperformers.
How’s the Stock Market Performing in 2025 So Far?
The S&P 500 index has reached its all-time highs, achieving returns of over 20% for the second consecutive year post-COVID. Billionaire investor and CEO of Berkshire Hathaway Warren Buffett made a bold move in 2024, selling a record $134 billion of net stock. Buffett’s move has raised concerns for investors and analysts. Historically, when Buffett’s firm becomes a net seller, it’s often followed by below-average market performance. Many believe that this could be a signal of stock market underperformance in 2025.
The stock market has already taken a hit in 2025 following the release of Chinese AI model DeepSeek. Almost $1 trillion was wiped away from the U.S. stock market in January 2025. Now, the market is reacting to President Donald Trump’s tariff policy, as the U.S. initiates 25% tariffs on Canada and Mexico.
“Tariffs increase the odds of a negative feedback loop in the economy. Nobody believed they would be implemented,” said Dennis Debusschere, founder of 22V Research.
The S&P 500 has been underperforming its global peers in 2025 so far, with equity indexes in China, Europe, Canada, and Mexico all racing ahead. S&P 500 has slid nearly 1.90% year-to-date, as of March 4. Whereas, the tech-heavy NASDAQ 100 index has dropped over 4% so far this year.
According to Deutsche Bank strategist Parag Thatte, equity positioning dropped significantly in the week ended February 28, plunging back down to near neutral and wiping out the post-election bump.
Billionaire investor Leon Cooperman in an interview during the Squawk Box show on CNBC recently said that the president is on the right track, but he is doing things in a very destabilizing manner. The president is focusing on reducing the deficit, which is the right thing to do, Cooperman added.
The transition phase seems to have a much bigger impact on the broader market, coupled with the tariff policy. Ironsides Macroeconomics’ Barry Knapp expects the Fed to cut a full percent this year, with the first cut projected in May. Knapp added that the economy needs to shift from government spending to capital spending for a better environment for business.
Our Methodology
For the best stocks to invest in according to billionaires, we analyzed Insider Monkey’s exclusive database of billionaire stock holdings. We selected the 30 best stocks to invest in based on the highest number of billionaire investors, updated as of Q4 2024. For the stocks with the same number of billionaire holdings, we have used the total value of billionaire holdings as a secondary metric to rank the stocks. These billionaires are founders or managers of some of the world’s leading hedge funds and companies. The stocks are ranked in ascending order of the aforementioned metrics.
Why are we interested in the stocks that hedge funds pile into? The reason is simple: our research has shown that we can outperform the market by imitating the top stock picks of the best hedge funds. Our quarterly newsletter’s strategy selects 14 small-cap and large-cap stocks every quarter and has returned 373.4% since May 2014, beating its benchmark by 218 percentage points (see more details here).
A technician operating an automated semiconductor processing machine with laser accuracy.
Lam Research Corporation (NASDAQ:LRCX)
No. of Billionaire Investors: 20
Total Value of Billionaire Holdings: $3.50 Billion
Lam Research Corporation (NASDAQ:LRCX) is a leading semiconductor equipment manufacturer that provides wafer fabrication equipment and services to the semiconductor industry. The company has a strong presence in two wafer fabrication equipment (WFE) categories. It is the leading supplier of etch systems and one of the top leaders in deposition systems. Lam Research Corporation products are widely used in memory chip production, but foundry customers like Taiwan Semiconductor also use its systems to make logic chips like CPUs and GPUs. In all cases, the company should benefit as AI increases demand for semiconductors.
On February 20, Susquehanna analyst Mehdi Hosseini raised the price target on LRCX shares from $75 to $125 and also upgraded the rating from Neutral to Positive. Hosseini believes that Lam’s strategic expansion of its serviceable available market (SAM) will diversify its revenue across different device types. Samsung, which expects its Memory business to get better by the end of 2025, will benefit Lam as the phone-maker remains one of the top three customers of the company.
Lam Research Corporation (NASDAQ:LRCX) has reported strong results during the Q2 FY2025, with revenue of $4.38 billion, up by 5% year-over-year. The company is well-positioned to take advantage of technology inflections in AI applications, with shipments for gate-all-around nodes and advanced packaging projected to surpass $3 billion in 2025.
Overall LRCX ranks 25th on our list of the best stocks to invest in according to billionaires. While we acknowledge the potential of LRCX as an investment, our conviction lies in the belief that AI stocks hold greater promise for delivering higher returns and doing so within a shorter time frame. If you are looking for an AI stock that is more promising than LRCX but that trades at less than 5 times its earnings, check out our report about the cheapest AI stock.
READ NEXT: 20 Best AI Stocks To Buy Now and Complete List of 59 AI Companies Under $2 Billion in Market Cap.
Disclosure: None. This article is originally published at Insider Monkey.
