Laboratory Co. of America Holdings (NYSE:LH) Director Sells $235,000.00 in Stock

Laboratory Co. of America Holdings (NYSE:LH) Director Kerrii B. Anderson sold 1,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $235.00, for a total transaction of $235,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 12,722 shares in the company, valued at $2,989,670. This represents a 7.29 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link.

Laboratory Co. of America Stock Down 0.8 %

Shares of LH traded down $1.86 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $233.24. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 142,992 shares, compared to its average volume of 477,788. The company’s 50 day moving average is $234.30 and its 200 day moving average is $224.18. The stock has a market cap of $19.51 billion, a PE ratio of 45.11, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.91 and a beta of 1.06. Laboratory Co. of America Holdings has a 12-month low of $191.97 and a 12-month high of $247.99. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66, a current ratio of 1.44 and a quick ratio of 1.30.

Laboratory Co. of America (NYSE:LH) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 24th. The medical research company reported $3.50 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.48 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $3.28 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.26 billion. Laboratory Co. of America had a net margin of 3.43% and a return on equity of 15.27%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $3.38 earnings per share. Equities analysts anticipate that Laboratory Co. of America Holdings will post 14.52 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Laboratory Co. of America Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 13th. Investors of record on Tuesday, November 26th were given a $0.72 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, November 26th. This represents a $2.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.23%. Laboratory Co. of America’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 55.71%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on LH shares. Evercore ISI upgraded shares of Laboratory Co. of America from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating and raised their price target for the stock from $260.00 to $265.00 in a report on Tuesday. HSBC raised Laboratory Co. of America from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Barclays raised their price objective on Laboratory Co. of America from $234.00 to $249.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Bank of America upped their target price on shares of Laboratory Co. of America from $262.00 to $271.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, December 13th. Finally, Piper Sandler lifted their price target on shares of Laboratory Co. of America from $235.00 to $240.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, October 28th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Laboratory Co. of America presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $260.54.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Laboratory Co. of America

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. SouthState Corp acquired a new stake in Laboratory Co. of America during the 3rd quarter worth $28,000. Horizon Bancorp Inc. IN purchased a new stake in shares of Laboratory Co. of America in the third quarter valued at about $29,000. Riverview Trust Co boosted its stake in shares of Laboratory Co. of America by 172.6% during the third quarter. Riverview Trust Co now owns 169 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $38,000 after buying an additional 107 shares during the period. Concord Wealth Partners grew its holdings in shares of Laboratory Co. of America by 43.3% during the third quarter. Concord Wealth Partners now owns 172 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $38,000 after buying an additional 52 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Kennebec Savings Bank acquired a new position in Laboratory Co. of America in the 3rd quarter valued at about $42,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 95.94% of the company’s stock.

About Laboratory Co. of America

Labcorp Holdings Inc provides laboratory services. It operates through two segments, Diagnostics Laboratories and Biopharma Laboratory Services. The company offers various tests, such as blood chemistry analyses, urinalyses, blood cell counts, thyroid, PAP, hemoglobin A1C and vitamin D, prostate-specific antigens, sexually transmitted diseases, hepatitis C, microbiology cultures and procedures, and alcohol and other substance-abuse tests.