Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio Decreases Position in Laboratory Co. of America Holdings (NYSE:LH)

Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio lessened its stake in shares of Laboratory Co. of America Holdings (NYSE:LH - Free Report) by 8.8% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 34,139 shares of the medical research company's stock after selling 3,279 shares during the period. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio's holdings in Laboratory Co. of America were worth $7,629,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of LH. OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC lifted its position in Laboratory Co. of America by 115.7% during the third quarter. OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC now owns 6,088 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $1,361,000 after acquiring an additional 3,265 shares during the last quarter. Great Valley Advisor Group Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Laboratory Co. of America during the 2nd quarter valued at $473,000. Alexander Randolph Advisory Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Laboratory Co. of America in the 3rd quarter worth $955,000. Marietta Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in Laboratory Co. of America by 50.7% during the 2nd quarter. Marietta Wealth Management LLC now owns 19,540 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $3,977,000 after buying an additional 6,575 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Mutual of America Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in Laboratory Co. of America during the 3rd quarter valued at about $2,316,000. Institutional investors own 95.94% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In other Laboratory Co. of America news, Director Kerrii B. Anderson sold 1,000 shares of Laboratory Co. of America stock in a transaction dated Thursday, October 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $230.00, for a total transaction of $230,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 13,722 shares in the company, valued at $3,156,060. This trade represents a 6.79 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CMO Amy B. Summy sold 3,672 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $238.91, for a total transaction of $877,277.52. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief marketing officer now owns 4,318 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,031,613.38. This represents a 45.96 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 24,572 shares of company stock valued at $5,910,209 in the last 90 days. Company insiders own 0.85% of the company's stock.

Laboratory Co. of America Price Performance

LH traded up $0.17 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $232.01. 318,395 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 660,595. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $230.40 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $219.97. Laboratory Co. of America Holdings has a 52-week low of $191.97 and a 52-week high of $247.99. The company has a market capitalization of $19.41 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 44.93, 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.

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, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $3.48 by $0.02. Laboratory Co. of America had a net margin of 3.43% and a return on equity of 15.27%. The business had revenue of $3.28 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.26 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $3.38 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was up 7.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, 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 Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 13th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, November 26th will be issued a $0.72 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, November 26th. This represents a $2.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.24%. Laboratory Co. of America's payout ratio is 55.71%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

LH has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Robert W. Baird upped their price target on shares of Laboratory Co. of America from $282.00 to $289.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Jefferies Financial Group reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $275.00 price objective (up from $265.00) on shares of Laboratory Co. of America in a report on Tuesday. 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 on the stock in a report on Tuesday, September 24th. Piper Sandler increased their price objective on shares of Laboratory Co. of America from $235.00 to $240.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday, October 28th. Finally, StockNews.com lowered Laboratory Co. of America from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, October 25th. 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. According to data from MarketBeat, Laboratory Co. of America currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $257.67.

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.