As noted earlier, RBC Capital analyst Mitch Steves upgraded Lam Research to Outperform from Sector Perform and raised his price target to $190 from $160. The analyst believes that the company's expected improvement in the second half of 2019 is "not encapsulated" in price, forecasting sequential increase in earnings as soon as Q3 reporting period amid improving demand environment. Steves adds that while revenues in the quarter may still be down on annualized basis, he sees earnings as "protected" by "variable cost structure changes and buybacks alone."