AQR Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in Laboratory Co. of America Holdings (NYSE:LH - Free Report) by 95.5% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 282,964 shares of the medical research company's stock after acquiring an additional 138,211 shares during the quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC owned 0.34% of Laboratory Co. of America worth $57,527,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.
Other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD lifted its position in Laboratory Co. of America by 2.6% in the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 114,488 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $25,012,000 after acquiring an additional 2,934 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp boosted its position in shares of Laboratory Co. of America by 3.0% during the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 1,163,252 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $264,396,000 after buying an additional 33,493 shares during the period. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. grew its holdings in shares of Laboratory Co. of America by 17.0% during the first quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 101,019 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $22,069,000 after buying an additional 14,708 shares in the last quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC raised its position in Laboratory Co. of America by 283.1% in the 1st quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 23,217 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $5,072,000 after buying an additional 17,156 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bank of Nova Scotia raised its position in Laboratory Co. of America by 1,715.7% in the 4th quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia now owns 175,176 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $39,814,000 after buying an additional 165,528 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 95.94% of the company's stock.
Laboratory Co. of America Stock Performance
Laboratory Co. of America stock traded up $1.86 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $222.10. 450,267 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 680,376. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $223.55 and its 200 day simple moving average is $211.70. The firm has a market cap of $18.72 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 44.68, a P/E/G ratio of 1.74 and a beta of 1.06. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39, a quick ratio of 0.77 and a current ratio of 0.88. Laboratory Co. of America Holdings has a 52 week low of $191.97 and a 52 week high of $238.46.
Laboratory Co. of America (NYSE:LH - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The medical research company reported $3.94 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.78 by $0.16. Laboratory Co. of America had a return on equity of 15.39% and a net margin of 3.60%. The company had revenue of $3.22 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.19 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $3.42 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 6.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts expect that Laboratory Co. of America Holdings will post 14.61 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.
Laboratory Co. of America Dividend Announcement
The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 13th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 29th were given a $0.72 dividend. This represents a $2.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.30%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, August 29th. Laboratory Co. of America's payout ratio is presently 57.95%.
Insider Transactions at Laboratory Co. of America
In other news, EVP Der Vaart Sandra D. Van sold 2,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $227.05, for a total value of $454,100.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 3,670 shares of the company's stock, valued at $833,273.50. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In other news, EVP Der Vaart Sandra D. Van sold 2,000 shares of Laboratory Co. of America stock in a transaction on Monday, August 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $227.05, for a total transaction of $454,100.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 3,670 shares of the company's stock, valued at $833,273.50. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Lance Berberian sold 12,093 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $229.10, for a total transaction of $2,770,506.30. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 15,921 shares in the company, valued at $3,647,501.10. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 29,679 shares of company stock worth $6,716,306. 0.85% of the stock is owned by insiders.
Analyst Ratings Changes
A number of equities analysts have weighed in on LH shares. Robert W. Baird upped their price target on Laboratory Co. of America from $278.00 to $282.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, September 20th. Barclays increased their target price on shares of Laboratory Co. of America from $213.00 to $249.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Friday, August 2nd. Truist Financial lifted their price target on shares of Laboratory Co. of America from $255.00 to $275.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. 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 research report on Tuesday. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised their price objective on Laboratory Co. of America from $245.00 to $265.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, September 23rd. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $254.50.
Check Out Our Latest Research Report on Laboratory Co. of America
About Laboratory Co. of America
(
Free Report)
Laboratory Corporation of America Holdings operates as a life sciences company that provides vital information to help doctors, hospitals, pharmaceutical companies, researchers, and patients make clear and confident decisions. It operates in two segments, Labcorp Diagnostics (Dx) and Biopharma Laboratory Services (BLS).
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