NEW YORK (Standard&Poor's) Dec. 11, 2007--Standard&Poor's Ratings Services said today that 'BB-' corporate credit rating on Lam Research Corp. remain on CreditWatch, where it was placed with negative implications on Aug. 27, 2007, following the company's announcement that it intends to acquire the SEZ Group for about $447 million net in cash, expected to close in the March 2008 quarter. Zurich, Switzerland-based SEZ is a major supplier of wafer cleaning equipment for the semiconductor industry. SEZ expects revenues of about $293 million for 2007. The wafer cleaning market is adjacent to Lam's core etching market segment, and both companies have leading positions in their respective segments. The rating initially was placed on CreditWatch following the company's
