Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in Laboratory Co. of America Holdings (NYSE:LH - Free Report) by 0.7% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 1,964,743 shares of the medical research company's stock after acquiring an additional 13,298 shares during the quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC owned about 2.35% of Laboratory Co. of America worth $437,561,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.
Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Dynamic Advisor Solutions LLC boosted its stake in Laboratory Co. of America by 6.0% during the 2nd quarter. Dynamic Advisor Solutions LLC now owns 1,153 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $235,000 after purchasing an additional 65 shares during the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC raised its holdings in Laboratory Co. of America by 3.5% in the 2nd quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 17,156 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $3,491,000 after acquiring an additional 575 shares during the last quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. lifted its stake in Laboratory Co. of America by 13.1% in the 2nd quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. now owns 8,955 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $1,823,000 after purchasing an additional 1,038 shares in the last quarter. Swedbank AB boosted its holdings in shares of Laboratory Co. of America by 2.9% during the 2nd quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 50,795 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $10,337,000 after purchasing an additional 1,450 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. grew its position in shares of Laboratory Co. of America by 1,128.1% in the second quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,793 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $392,000 after purchasing an additional 1,647 shares in the last quarter. 95.94% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.
Wall Street Analyst Weigh In
A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the company. Barclays boosted 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 note on Friday, October 25th. Jefferies Financial Group reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $275.00 price objective (up previously from $265.00) on shares of Laboratory Co. of America in a report on Tuesday. Hsbc Global Res raised shares of Laboratory Co. of America from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Evercore ISI cut 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 report on Tuesday, September 24th. Finally, HSBC raised shares of 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 company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Laboratory Co. of America has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $257.67.
Check Out Our Latest Stock Analysis on Laboratory Co. of America
Laboratory Co. of America Trading Up 0.1 %
LH traded up $0.17 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $232.01. 318,499 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 660,595. The company has a market cap of $19.41 billion, a PE ratio of 44.88, a PEG ratio of 1.89 and a beta of 1.05. The company has a current ratio of 1.44, a quick ratio of 1.30 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66. The firm's fifty day moving average is $230.72 and its two-hundred day moving average is $220.36. Laboratory Co. of America Holdings has a 1-year low of $191.97 and a 1-year high of $247.99.
Laboratory Co. of America (NYSE:LH - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 24th. The medical research company reported $3.50 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.48 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $3.28 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.26 billion. Laboratory Co. of America had a net margin of 3.43% and a return on equity of 15.27%. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 7.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $3.38 earnings per share. Equities analysts forecast that Laboratory Co. of America Holdings will post 14.52 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.
Laboratory Co. of America Announces Dividend
The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 13th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, November 26th were paid a $0.72 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, November 26th. This represents a $2.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.24%. Laboratory Co. of America's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 55.71%.
Insider Transactions at Laboratory Co. of America
In other Laboratory Co. of America news, CEO Adam H. Schechter sold 6,189 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $243.47, for a total value of $1,506,835.83. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 87,441 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $21,289,260.27. This represents a 6.61 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Glenn A. Eisenberg sold 11,711 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, December 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $240.43, for a total transaction of $2,815,675.73. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 31,289 shares in the company, valued at $7,522,814.27. The trade was a 27.23 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 24,572 shares of company stock valued at $5,910,209. 0.85% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.
Laboratory Co. of America Profile
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Free Report)
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.
Further Reading
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