Laboratory Co. of America (NYSE:LH) Lifted to Buy at StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Laboratory Co. of America (NYSE:LH) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research report sent to investors on Monday morning.

LH has been the topic of a number of other research reports. Leerink Partnrs reaffirmed an outperform rating on shares of Laboratory Co. of America in a report on Monday, February 26th. Evercore ISI initiated coverage on shares of Laboratory Co. of America in a research note on Friday, February 9th. They issued an in-line rating and a $240.00 price objective for the company. TheStreet lowered shares of Laboratory Co. of America from a b- rating to a c+ rating in a research report on Thursday, February 15th. Barclays reduced their price target on shares of Laboratory Co. of America from $234.00 to $213.00 and set an equal weight rating for the company in a research report on Friday, April 26th. Finally, Truist Financial lowered their price target on Laboratory Co. of America from $270.00 to $255.00 and set a buy rating on the stock in a report on Friday, April 26th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus price target of $243.14.

Laboratory Co. of America Price Performance

Shares of NYSE LH opened at $192.50 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39, a current ratio of 0.88 and a quick ratio of 0.76. The company has a market cap of $16.23 billion, a PE ratio of 38.73, a P/E/G ratio of 1.50 and a beta of 1.02. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $206.26 and a 200 day moving average price of $214.96. Laboratory Co. of America has a 1-year low of $174.20 and a 1-year high of $234.09.

Laboratory Co. of America (NYSE:LH) last released its earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The medical research company reported $3.68 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.48 by $0.20. The company had revenue of $3.18 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.12 billion. Laboratory Co. of America had a net margin of 3.52% and a return on equity of 14.68%. The business’s revenue was up 4.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $3.82 EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that Laboratory Co. of America will post 14.87 EPS for the current year.

Laboratory Co. of America Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, June 12th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, May 28th will be issued a $0.72 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 24th. This represents a $2.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.50%. Laboratory Co. of America’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 57.95%.

Insider Transactions at Laboratory Co. of America

In other Laboratory Co. of America news, CMO Amy B. Summy sold 227 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $218.45, for a total value of $49,588.15. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief marketing officer now directly owns 3,859 shares in the company, valued at approximately $842,998.55. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In related news, EVP Der Vaart Sandra D. Van sold 2,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $210.83, for a total value of $421,660.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 5,637 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,188,448.71. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CMO Amy B. Summy sold 227 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $218.45, for a total transaction of $49,588.15. Following the completion of the sale, the chief marketing officer now owns 3,859 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $842,998.55. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 23,744 shares of company stock worth $5,111,382 over the last ninety days. 0.85% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Laboratory Co. of America

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in LH. Mendota Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in Laboratory Co. of America in the fourth quarter valued at $29,000. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC acquired a new stake in Laboratory Co. of America during the 1st quarter worth approximately $30,000. Provence Wealth Management Group purchased a new position in Laboratory Co. of America in the third quarter valued at approximately $29,000. McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. lifted its position in Laboratory Co. of America by 313.2% during the first quarter. McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 219 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $48,000 after buying an additional 166 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC purchased a new stake in Laboratory Co. of America during the fourth quarter worth approximately $60,000. 95.94% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Laboratory Co. of America Company Profile

Laboratory Corporation of America Holdings operates as a life sciences company that provides vital information to help doctors, hospitals, pharmaceutical companies, researchers, and patients make clear and confident decisions. It operates in two segments, Labcorp Diagnostics (Dx) and Biopharma Laboratory Services (BLS).