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🐂 LRCX — Company Profile (Teaching)

Teaching site, not investment advice. Specific market cap / stock price / financial figures change frequently and are intentionally omitted; use the SEC + Yahoo Finance links below to pull real-time data yourself.

📌 Basics

Dimension Content Source
Core business Semiconductor wafer fabrication equipment — global etch leader + some deposition + cleaning; critical in 3D NAND + advanced logic + DRAM HBM manufacturing 10-K FY25
Founded / HQ 1980 / Fremont, California, USA wiki
CEO Timothy Archer (since 2018/12) DEF 14A
Primary listing NASDAQ: LRCX —
Fiscal year Ends June 30 (FY26 Q3 = Jan-Mar 2026 quarter) SEC EDGAR

💡 Real-time market cap / share price / China revenue share: see SEC primary + IR links below.

🏭 Supply Chain Coordinates (Part 1-C6 framework)

Upstream (Who LRCX Depends On)

Supplier What flows Key dependency
Global precision mechanical + vacuum + RF power + chemical components High-precision components Multi-source
US + global R&D talent Etch / deposition process R&D

Downstream (Who Depends on LRCX)

Customer Relationship Concentration
TSM Etch full process + some deposition Top-3 customer
SSNLF Samsung (Foundry + Memory) Full process Top-3
SKH + MU DRAM HBM + NAND etch (critical 3D NAND equipment) Key memory customers
INTC 18A etch Growing
Chinese customers (SMIC / CXMT / YMTC) Mature node + mid-end nodes 20-30% of LRCX revenue (export-control risk)

Competitors

  • Etch: TOELY Tokyo Electron (Japan, secondary; LRCX is global #1) + AMAT (small share in etch)
  • Deposition: AMAT dominant / TOELY secondary (LRCX deposition is second tier)
  • Cleaning: LRCX + SCREEN (Japan, 7735.T) duopoly
  • EUV lithography: ASML (LRCX does not do this)
  • Inspection: KLAC (LRCX does not do this)
  • Chinese domestics: AMEC (688012.SH) + NAURA — mid-end etch share rising

💼 Business Model + Value Capture (Part 1-C7 view)

  • Revenue mix: Systems (equipment sales) ~60% / Customer Support Business Group (CSBG, maintenance + upgrades + spares) ~40% (high-GM recurring revenue)
  • Gross margin: Overall ~48%; CSBG GM higher
  • Pricing power: Etch leadership provides some pricing leverage (vs. TOELY direct competitor) — medium-strong
  • Substitution difficulty: High — long customer qualification; NAND/HBM 3D etch process is extremely complex, switching risk high

(For specific quarterly revenue / China revenue share, see the latest SEC 10-Q.)

🏰 Moat Assessment (Part 3-C2 Buffett 5-step lens)

Type Strength (0-1) Source
Brand 0.6 Veteran semiconductor equipment maker, recognized leader within etch circles
Switching cost 0.8 Etch process extremely complex; customer switching requires 2-3 years of qualification
Network effects 0.3 Not classic network effects
Scale + cost 0.6 World's #1 etch equipment maker scale advantage

Composite: 2.3 / 4 → strong etch moat, but export controls + cyclicality are core risks

⚠️ Key Reverse-Trigger Conditions (Part 3-C5 anti-thesis view)

  • Trigger 1 (event): US further restricts etch equipment exports to China (some high-end already restricted) — LRCX China revenue impact
  • Trigger 2 (cyclical): Global NAND + DRAM capex downturn — historical 18-24 month cycles
  • Trigger 3 (quarterly): Hyperscaler AI capex growth slows — indirectly affects HBM memory makers' capex
  • Trigger 4 (annual): TOELY gains etch share — direct competitor threat
  • Trigger 5 (low probability): Chinese AMEC high-end etch breakthrough + significant substitution

🔗 Teaching Cross-References

📚 SEC Primary Filings (look it up yourself)

Real-time quote: Yahoo Finance LRCX

Teaching use · numbers change — learn the method, not the specific figures · investment decisions are based on your own research + risk tolerance