1,298 Shares in Laboratory Co. of America Holdings (NYSE:LH) Bought by American National Bank & Trust Co. VA

American National Bank & Trust Co. VA bought a new position in Laboratory Co. of America Holdings (NYSE:LH) in the first quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm bought 1,298 shares of the medical research company’s stock, valued at approximately $284,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Mendota Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Laboratory Co. of America during the 4th quarter worth about $29,000. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC acquired a new position in shares of Laboratory Co. of America during the 4th quarter worth about $60,000. Disciplined Equity Management Inc. acquired a new position in Laboratory Co. of America during the fourth quarter worth $68,000. Oakworth Capital Inc. raised its position in Laboratory Co. of America by 48.1% during the fourth quarter. Oakworth Capital Inc. now owns 308 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $70,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Planned Solutions Inc. acquired a new stake in Laboratory Co. of America in the fourth quarter valued at $76,000. 95.94% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at Laboratory Co. of America

In related 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 stock was sold at an average price of $210.83, for a total value of $421,660.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 5,637 shares in the company, valued at $1,188,448.71. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. In related news, Director Kerrii B. Anderson sold 250 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $204.13, for a total value of $51,032.50. Following the sale, the director now owns 15,972 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,260,364.36. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Der Vaart Sandra D. Van sold 2,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $210.83, for a total value of $421,660.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 5,637 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,188,448.71. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 4,939 shares of company stock worth $1,021,078. Company insiders own 0.85% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have recently weighed in on LH. Barclays lowered their price objective on shares of Laboratory Co. of America from $234.00 to $213.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, April 26th. Truist Financial lowered their price target on Laboratory Co. of America from $270.00 to $255.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, April 26th. Argus raised Laboratory Co. of America from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $250.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Monday, March 25th. Robert W. Baird decreased their target price on Laboratory Co. of America from $255.00 to $244.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, April 26th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on Laboratory Co. of America from $261.00 to $243.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, May 30th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $241.86.

Laboratory Co. of America Trading Up 0.6 %

Shares of Laboratory Co. of America stock opened at $203.86 on Friday. Laboratory Co. of America Holdings has a 52-week low of $191.97 and a 52-week high of $234.09. The stock has a market cap of $17.19 billion, a PE ratio of 41.02, a PEG ratio of 1.53 and a beta of 1.05. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $202.18 and a 200-day moving average of $212.49. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a current ratio of 0.88.

Laboratory Co. of America (NYSE:LH) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 25th. The medical research company reported $3.68 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.48 by $0.20. Laboratory Co. of America had a net margin of 3.52% and a return on equity of 14.68%. The firm had revenue of $3.18 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.12 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $3.82 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Laboratory Co. of America Holdings will post 14.87 EPS for the current year.

Laboratory Co. of America Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, June 12th. Investors of record on Tuesday, May 28th were paid a $0.72 dividend. This represents a $2.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.41%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 24th. Laboratory Co. of America’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 57.95%.

Laboratory Co. of America Company Profile

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).