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

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Laboratory Co. of America (NYSE:LH - Free Report) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a report published on Friday.

Several other analysts have also commented on the company. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price target on Laboratory Co. of America from $275.00 to $290.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Hsbc Global Res raised Laboratory Co. of America from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Robert W. Baird boosted their price target on 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. Piper Sandler boosted their price target on Laboratory Co. of America from $235.00 to $240.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday, October 28th. Finally, UBS Group reduced their price objective on Laboratory Co. of America from $293.00 to $286.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $265.31.

Laboratory Co. of America Stock Performance

Shares of LH stock traded down $0.21 during trading on Friday, reaching $244.87. The company had a trading volume of 241,006 shares, compared to its average volume of 595,568. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $236.76 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $230.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67, a current ratio of 1.44 and a quick ratio of 1.30. Laboratory Co. of America has a one year low of $191.97 and a one year high of $258.59. The company has a market capitalization of $20.48 billion, a PE ratio of 27.76, a PEG ratio of 1.84 and a beta of 1.07.

Laboratory Co. of America (NYSE:LH - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The medical research company reported $3.45 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.40 by $0.05. Laboratory Co. of America had a return on equity of 15.29% and a net margin of 5.73%. Sell-side analysts forecast that Laboratory Co. of America will post 15.96 earnings per share for the current year.

Laboratory Co. of America Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 12th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, February 27th will be issued a $0.72 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, February 27th. This represents a $2.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.18%. Laboratory Co. of America's dividend payout ratio is presently 32.65%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Laboratory Co. of America

In other news, CMO Amy B. Summy sold 3,672 shares of the business's stock in a transaction 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 of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,031,613.38. The trade was a 45.96 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Dwight Gary Gilliland sold 1,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, December 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $241.00, for a total value of $241,000.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 7,712 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,858,592. This trade represents a 11.48 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 18,383 shares of company stock valued at $4,408,373 in the last three months. Corporate insiders own 0.85% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Laboratory Co. of America

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in LH. LPL Financial LLC lifted its stake in shares of Laboratory Co. of America by 63.8% in the 4th quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 62,546 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $14,343,000 after purchasing an additional 24,357 shares during the period. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS purchased a new stake in shares of Laboratory Co. of America in the fourth quarter worth approximately $6,860,000. Sei Investments Co. raised its stake in shares of Laboratory Co. of America by 12.4% in the fourth quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 223,162 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $51,176,000 after purchasing an additional 24,616 shares during the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. raised its stake in shares of Laboratory Co. of America by 11.5% in the fourth quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 921,184 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $211,246,000 after purchasing an additional 95,162 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Mizuho Securities USA LLC grew its holdings in shares of Laboratory Co. of America by 45.6% in the fourth quarter. Mizuho Securities USA LLC now owns 7,927 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $1,818,000 after acquiring an additional 2,482 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 95.94% of the company's stock.

Laboratory Co. of America Company Profile

Labcorp Holdings, Inc engages in providing medical testing services. The company was founded on April 16, 2024 and is headquartered in Burlington, NC.