Laboratory Co. of America (NYSE:LH) Upgraded by StockNews.com to Buy

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Laboratory Co. of America (NYSE:LH) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research report sent to investors on Friday morning.

Several other equities research analysts have also issued reports on the stock. Robert W. Baird lifted their price target on shares of Laboratory Co. of America from $261.00 to $277.00 and gave the company an outperform rating in a report on Friday, August 2nd. UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of Laboratory Co. of America from $260.00 to $270.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a report on Friday, August 2nd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their price target on shares of Laboratory Co. of America from $220.00 to $230.00 and gave the company a hold 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 report on Friday, August 2nd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on shares of Laboratory Co. of America from $261.00 to $243.00 and set an overweight rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, May 30th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus price target of $249.15.

Laboratory Co. of America Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:LH traded up $1.72 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $226.46. The stock had a trading volume of 515,293 shares, compared to its average volume of 724,494. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $208.19 and its 200-day moving average price is $210.43. The company has a market capitalization of $19.09 billion, a P/E ratio of 45.57, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.76 and a beta of 1.05. The company has a quick ratio of 0.76, a current ratio of 0.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39. Laboratory Co. of America has a fifty-two week low of $191.97 and a fifty-two week high of $238.46.

Laboratory Co. of America (NYSE:LH) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The medical research company reported $3.94 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.78 by $0.16. The company had revenue of $3.22 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.19 billion. Laboratory Co. of America had a net margin of 3.60% and a return on equity of 15.39%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $3.42 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Laboratory Co. of America will post 14.84 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Laboratory Co. of America Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 13th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 29th will be given a $0.72 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, August 29th. This represents a $2.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.27%. Laboratory Co. of America’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 57.95%.

Insider Transactions at Laboratory Co. of America

In other news, EVP Der Vaart Sandra D. Van sold 2,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $210.83, for a total value of $421,660.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 5,637 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,188,448.71. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other news, EVP Der Vaart Sandra D. Van sold 2,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $210.83, for a total value of $421,660.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 5,637 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,188,448.71. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Lance Berberian sold 12,093 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on 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 transaction, the executive vice president now owns 15,921 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,647,501.10. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 14,679 shares of company stock worth $3,324,016. Company insiders own 0.85% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. boosted its stake in Laboratory Co. of America by 25.4% during the second quarter. Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,949,640 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $396,771,000 after acquiring an additional 395,197 shares in the last quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC lifted its stake in shares of Laboratory Co. of America by 58.8% in the first quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 1,613,854 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $352,563,000 after buying an additional 597,571 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its stake in shares of Laboratory Co. of America by 135.0% in the second quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 1,609,826 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $327,616,000 after buying an additional 924,881 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its stake in shares of Laboratory Co. of America by 2.4% in the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,417,645 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $288,519,000 after buying an additional 33,497 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Laboratory Co. of America in the fourth quarter valued at $291,045,000. 95.94% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Laboratory Co. of America

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).