Weybosset Research & Management LLC Makes New Investment in Laboratory Co. of America Holdings (NYSE:LH)

Weybosset Research & Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Laboratory Co. of America Holdings (NYSE:LH) in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund purchased 39,447 shares of the medical research company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,816,000. Laboratory Co. of America makes up about 3.0% of Weybosset Research & Management LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 19th largest position.

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on the stock. Bank of America upped their price objective on shares of Laboratory Co. of America from $240.00 to $260.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, August 5th. Barclays boosted their price objective on Laboratory Co. of America from $213.00 to $249.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. UBS Group raised their target price on Laboratory Co. of America from $260.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their target price on Laboratory Co. of America from $220.00 to $230.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, August 2nd. Finally, Piper Sandler began coverage on shares of Laboratory Co. of America in a research note on Tuesday. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $235.00 price objective for the company. Four equities 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.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $253.00.

Laboratory Co. of America Stock Down 0.1 %

LH opened at $219.00 on Thursday. Laboratory Co. of America Holdings has a fifty-two week low of $191.97 and a fifty-two week high of $238.46. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39, a current ratio of 0.88 and a quick ratio of 0.77. The company’s 50-day moving average is $224.17 and its 200 day moving average is $211.85. The firm has a market capitalization of $18.46 billion, a P/E ratio of 44.06, a PEG ratio of 1.74 and a beta of 1.06.

Laboratory Co. of America (NYSE:LH) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The medical research company reported $3.94 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.78 by $0.16. The business had revenue of $3.22 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.19 billion. Laboratory Co. of America had a return on equity of 15.39% and a net margin of 3.60%. Laboratory Co. of America’s quarterly revenue was up 6.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company posted $3.42 earnings per share. Research analysts expect that Laboratory Co. of America Holdings will post 14.61 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Laboratory Co. of America Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 13th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 29th were given a dividend of $0.72 per share. This represents a $2.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.32%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, August 29th. Laboratory Co. of America’s dividend payout ratio is currently 57.95%.

Insider Transactions at Laboratory Co. of America

In related news, EVP Der Vaart Sandra D. Van sold 2,000 shares of Laboratory Co. of America stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $227.05, for a total value 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 approximately $833,273.50. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In related news, EVP Der Vaart Sandra D. Van sold 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $227.05, for a total transaction of $454,100.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 3,670 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $833,273.50. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CFO Glenn A. Eisenberg sold 15,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 31,289 shares in the company, valued at $7,008,423.11. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 29,679 shares of company stock worth $6,716,306 in the last quarter. Insiders own 0.85% of the company’s stock.

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).