Quantbot Technologies LP Takes $596,000 Position in Laboratory Co. of America Holdings (NYSE:LH)

Quantbot Technologies LP purchased a new position in shares of Laboratory Co. of America Holdings (NYSE:LH - Free Report) during the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm purchased 2,667 shares of the medical research company's stock, valued at approximately $596,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the business. Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its holdings in Laboratory Co. of America by 135.0% in the 2nd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 1,609,826 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $327,616,000 after acquiring an additional 924,881 shares during the last quarter. Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Laboratory Co. of America by 25.4% in the second quarter. Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,949,640 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $396,771,000 after purchasing an additional 395,197 shares during the period. Select Equity Group L.P. purchased a new stake in shares of Laboratory Co. of America during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $73,928,000. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC boosted its holdings in Laboratory Co. of America by 16.4% in the 3rd quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 1,865,460 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $416,893,000 after buying an additional 263,105 shares during the period. Finally, FMR LLC grew its stake in Laboratory Co. of America by 17.0% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 1,586,397 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $354,528,000 after buying an additional 230,708 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 95.94% of the company's stock.

Laboratory Co. of America Trading Up 0.1 %

LH traded up $0.25 on Tuesday, hitting $240.88. 190,569 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 665,540. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66, a quick ratio of 1.30 and a current ratio of 1.44. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $228.01 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $218.44. The stock has a market capitalization of $20.15 billion, a PE ratio of 46.55, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.98 and a beta of 1.05. Laboratory Co. of America Holdings has a 12 month low of $191.97 and a 12 month high of $247.99.

Laboratory Co. of America (NYSE:LH - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The medical research company reported $3.50 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.48 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $3.28 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate 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 period in the previous year, the firm earned $3.38 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts expect that Laboratory Co. of America Holdings will post 14.53 earnings per share for the current year.

Laboratory Co. of America Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 13th. Investors of record on Tuesday, November 26th will be issued a dividend of $0.72 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, November 26th. This represents a $2.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.20%. Laboratory Co. of America's dividend payout ratio is presently 55.71%.

Insider Activity at Laboratory Co. of America

In other news, Director Kerrii B. Anderson sold 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, October 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $230.00, for a total value of $230,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 13,722 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,156,060. This represents a 6.79 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Adam H. Schechter sold 6,189 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, November 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $243.47, for a total transaction of $1,506,835.83. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 87,441 shares in the company, valued at approximately $21,289,260.27. This trade represents a 6.61 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 11,861 shares of company stock worth $2,853,533 over the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 0.85% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price target on Laboratory Co. of America from $245.00 to $265.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, September 23rd. Bank of America increased their target price on shares of Laboratory Co. of America from $240.00 to $260.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, August 5th. Evercore ISI reduced their price target on shares of Laboratory Co. of America from $250.00 to $240.00 and set an "in-line" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, September 24th. HSBC raised Laboratory Co. of America from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, Barclays raised their price target on Laboratory Co. of America from $234.00 to $249.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Friday, October 25th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $255.92.

Laboratory Co. of America Profile

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.