Leerink Partnrs Has Bearish Estimate for LH FY2024 Earnings

Laboratory Co. of America Holdings (NYSE:LH - Free Report) - Research analysts at Leerink Partnrs dropped their FY2024 earnings per share estimates for Laboratory Co. of America in a report issued on Monday, January 6th. Leerink Partnrs analyst M. Cherny now anticipates that the medical research company will post earnings per share of $14.53 for the year, down from their prior estimate of $14.59. The consensus estimate for Laboratory Co. of America's current full-year earnings is $14.52 per share. Leerink Partnrs also issued estimates for Laboratory Co. of America's Q1 2025 earnings at $3.84 EPS.

Other equities research analysts also recently issued reports about the stock. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on shares of Laboratory Co. of America from $260.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 17th. HSBC raised Laboratory Co. of America from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Robert W. Baird upped their price objective on Laboratory Co. of America from $282.00 to $289.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, October 25th. Evercore ISI raised Laboratory Co. of America from an "in-line" rating to an "outperform" rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $260.00 to $265.00 in a report on Tuesday. Finally, Bank of America upped their price target on shares of Laboratory Co. of America from $262.00 to $271.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, December 13th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Laboratory Co. of America presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $260.54.

Laboratory Co. of America Stock Performance

Shares of LH stock traded down $0.92 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $234.18. 439,155 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 537,589. Laboratory Co. of America has a 52 week low of $191.97 and a 52 week high of $247.99. The firm has a market capitalization of $19.59 billion, a P/E ratio of 45.30, a PEG ratio of 1.91 and a beta of 1.06. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $234.30 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $224.18. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66, a quick ratio of 1.30 and a current ratio of 1.44.

Laboratory Co. of America (NYSE:LH - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The medical research company reported $3.50 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $3.48 by $0.02. Laboratory Co. of America had a return on equity of 15.27% and a net margin of 3.43%. The business had revenue of $3.28 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.26 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $3.38 EPS. The firm's revenue was up 7.4% compared to the same quarter last year.

Laboratory Co. of America Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 13th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, November 26th were paid a $0.72 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, November 26th. This represents a $2.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.23%. Laboratory Co. of America's payout ratio is 55.71%.

Insider Transactions at Laboratory Co. of America

In related news, EVP Glenn A. Eisenberg sold 11,711 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, December 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $240.43, for a total transaction of $2,815,675.73. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 31,289 shares of the company's stock, valued at $7,522,814.27. This trade represents a 27.23 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Kerrii B. Anderson sold 1,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $235.00, for a total value of $235,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 12,722 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,989,670. The trade was a 7.29 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 25,572 shares of company stock valued at $6,145,209. Corporate insiders own 0.85% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Laboratory Co. of America

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in LH. SouthState Corp bought a new position in Laboratory Co. of America during the 3rd quarter worth $28,000. Horizon Bancorp Inc. IN acquired a new stake in shares of Laboratory Co. of America in the third quarter valued at about $29,000. Riverview Trust Co raised its position in shares of Laboratory Co. of America by 172.6% during the third quarter. Riverview Trust Co now owns 169 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $38,000 after acquiring an additional 107 shares during the last quarter. Concord Wealth Partners lifted its stake in shares of Laboratory Co. of America by 43.3% in the third quarter. Concord Wealth Partners now owns 172 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $38,000 after acquiring an additional 52 shares during the period. Finally, Kennebec Savings Bank bought a new stake in Laboratory Co. of America in the third quarter valued at approximately $42,000. 95.94% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.