Laboratory Co. of America Holdings (NYSE:LH) Shares Purchased by Merit Financial Group LLC

Merit Financial Group LLC grew its holdings in shares of Laboratory Co. of America Holdings (NYSE:LH) by 23.0% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 3,414 shares of the medical research company’s stock after acquiring an additional 639 shares during the period. Merit Financial Group LLC’s holdings in Laboratory Co. of America were worth $795,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the business. Graney & King LLC acquired a new stake in Laboratory Co. of America in the fourth quarter valued at $26,000. Human Investing LLC bought a new stake in shares of Laboratory Co. of America in the 4th quarter worth about $39,000. Heck Capital Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Laboratory Co. of America in the 4th quarter worth about $44,000. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. acquired a new stake in shares of Laboratory Co. of America in the 4th quarter valued at about $52,000. Finally, Deseret Mutual Benefit Administrators lifted its position in shares of Laboratory Co. of America by 28.2% during the fourth quarter. Deseret Mutual Benefit Administrators now owns 232 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $53,000 after purchasing an additional 51 shares during the last quarter. 95.94% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Laboratory Co. of America

In related news, EVP Amy B. Summy sold 758 shares of Laboratory Co. of America stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $231.67, for a total transaction of $175,605.86. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 5,302 shares in the company, valued at $1,228,314.34. The trade was a 12.51% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CAO Peter J. Wilkinson sold 829 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $242.26, for a total transaction of $200,833.54. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 2,054 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $497,602.04. This represents a 28.75% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 11,592 shares of company stock valued at $2,841,820 in the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 0.84% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently weighed in on the company. Citigroup raised Laboratory Co. of America from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $250.00 to $300.00 in a report on Tuesday, March 4th. Wall Street Zen downgraded Laboratory Co. of America from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, April 18th. Barclays upped their price target on Laboratory Co. of America from $240.00 to $250.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 30th. Robert W. Baird lifted their price objective on shares of Laboratory Co. of America from $253.00 to $267.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 30th. Finally, Redburn Atlantic began coverage on shares of Laboratory Co. of America in a research note on Wednesday, April 2nd. They set a “buy” rating and a $276.00 target price for the company. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Laboratory Co. of America currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $272.92.

Laboratory Co. of America Stock Up 0.7%

Laboratory Co. of America stock opened at $253.92 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67, a quick ratio of 1.30 and a current ratio of 1.44. Laboratory Co. of America Holdings has a one year low of $192.38 and a one year high of $258.59. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $237.30 and a 200-day simple moving average of $238.80. The firm has a market capitalization of $21.25 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.79, a P/E/G ratio of 1.71 and a beta of 0.81.

Laboratory Co. of America (NYSE:LH) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The medical research company reported $3.84 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.73 by $0.11. Laboratory Co. of America had a net margin of 5.73% and a return on equity of 15.29%. The firm had revenue of $3.35 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.41 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $3.68 EPS. Laboratory Co. of America’s revenue was up 5.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts expect that Laboratory Co. of America Holdings will post 16.01 earnings per share for the current year.

Laboratory Co. of America Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, June 11th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 29th will be given a $0.72 dividend. This represents a $2.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.13%. Laboratory Co. of America’s dividend payout ratio is currently 33.29%.

Laboratory Co. of America Profile

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