Barclays PLC Raises Holdings in Laboratory Co. of America Holdings (NYSE:LH)

Barclays PLC lifted its position in shares of Laboratory Co. of America Holdings (NYSE:LH - Free Report) by 11.8% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 620,721 shares of the medical research company's stock after purchasing an additional 65,356 shares during the quarter. Barclays PLC owned about 0.74% of Laboratory Co. of America worth $138,718,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Industrial Alliance Investment Management Inc. bought a new stake in Laboratory Co. of America in the second quarter worth $27,000. SouthState Corp bought a new stake in Laboratory Co. of America in the third quarter worth $28,000. Horizon Bancorp Inc. IN bought a new stake in Laboratory Co. of America in the third quarter worth $29,000. Innealta Capital LLC bought a new stake in Laboratory Co. of America in the second quarter worth $32,000. Finally, Family Firm Inc. bought a new stake in Laboratory Co. of America in the second quarter worth $37,000. 95.94% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Laboratory Co. of America Stock Down 2.1 %

LH stock traded down $5.01 on Wednesday, hitting $229.53. 573,954 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 662,937. Laboratory Co. of America Holdings has a 12-month low of $191.97 and a 12-month high of $247.99. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $229.85 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $219.82. 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 stock has a market cap of $19.20 billion, a P/E ratio of 44.56, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.91 and a beta of 1.05.

Laboratory Co. of America (NYSE:LH - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The medical research company reported $3.50 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.48 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $3.28 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.26 billion. Laboratory Co. of America had a return on equity of 15.27% and a net margin of 3.43%. 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 business earned $3.38 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts expect 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 announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 13th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, November 26th will be paid a $0.72 dividend. 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 1.25%. Laboratory Co. of America's payout ratio is 55.71%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on LH. Hsbc Global Res raised Laboratory Co. of America from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Barclays upped 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. Evercore ISI reduced their price objective on 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. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $275.00 price objective (up previously from $265.00) on shares of Laboratory Co. of America in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, HSBC upgraded Laboratory Co. of America from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $256.75.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Laboratory Co. of America news, EVP Der Vaart Sandra D. Van sold 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, November 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $239.42, for a total transaction of $239,420.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 2,670 shares of the company's stock, valued at $639,251.40. This represents a 27.25 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Glenn A. Eisenberg sold 11,711 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $240.43, for a total value of $2,815,675.73. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 31,289 shares of the company's stock, valued at $7,522,814.27. The trade was a 27.23 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 24,572 shares of company stock valued at $5,910,209. 0.85% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Laboratory Co. of America Company 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.