Bleakley Financial Group LLC Sells 62 Shares of Laboratory Co. of America Holdings (NYSE:LH)

Bleakley Financial Group LLC reduced its holdings in shares of Laboratory Co. of America Holdings (NYSE:LH) by 3.7% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 1,609 shares of the medical research company’s stock after selling 62 shares during the period. Bleakley Financial Group LLC’s holdings in Laboratory Co. of America were worth $360,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in LH. Industrial Alliance Investment Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Laboratory Co. of America during the 2nd quarter valued at about $27,000. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Laboratory Co. of America during the 1st quarter valued at about $30,000. Innealta Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Laboratory Co. of America during the 2nd quarter valued at about $32,000. Family Firm Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Laboratory Co. of America during the 2nd quarter valued at about $37,000. Finally, McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. boosted its position in Laboratory Co. of America by 313.2% in the first quarter. McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 219 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $48,000 after buying an additional 166 shares in the last quarter. 95.94% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Laboratory Co. of America Stock Up 3.0 %

Shares of NYSE:LH opened at $220.51 on Wednesday. Laboratory Co. of America Holdings has a 52 week low of $191.97 and a 52 week high of $238.46. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39, a quick ratio of 0.77 and a current ratio of 0.88. The company has a market capitalization of $18.59 billion, a PE ratio of 44.37, a PEG ratio of 1.67 and a beta of 1.05. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $222.50 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $212.08.

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. Laboratory Co. of America had a net margin of 3.60% and a return on equity of 15.39%. The firm had revenue of $3.22 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.19 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $3.42 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 6.2% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts forecast that Laboratory Co. of America Holdings will post 14.56 earnings per share for the current year.

Laboratory Co. of America Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 13th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, November 26th will be paid a $0.72 dividend. This represents a $2.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.31%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, November 26th. Laboratory Co. of America’s payout ratio is presently 57.95%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Laboratory Co. of America

In other news, EVP Lance Berberian sold 12,093 shares of the 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 completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 15,921 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,647,501.10. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In related news, EVP Lance Berberian sold 12,093 shares of the firm’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 sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 15,921 shares in the company, valued at $3,647,501.10. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CFO Glenn A. Eisenberg sold 15,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $223.99, for a total transaction of $3,359,850.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 31,289 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,008,423.11. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 29,679 shares of company stock valued at $6,716,306. Corporate insiders own 0.85% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

LH has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. UBS Group boosted 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 research report on Friday, August 2nd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted 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 research report on Friday, August 2nd. Evercore ISI reduced their target price 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, September 24th. Barclays reduced their target price on shares of Laboratory Co. of America from $249.00 to $234.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded shares of Laboratory Co. of America from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $251.85.

Laboratory Co. of America 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.