Laboratory Co. of America Holdings (NYSE:LH) Shares Bought by EP Wealth Advisors LLC

EP Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Laboratory Co. of America Holdings (NYSE:LH) by 27.0% during the 2nd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 1,226 shares of the medical research company’s stock after acquiring an additional 261 shares during the period. EP Wealth Advisors LLC’s holdings in Laboratory Co. of America were worth $250,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Industrial Alliance Investment Management Inc. acquired a new position in Laboratory Co. of America in the 2nd quarter worth $27,000. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC purchased a new position in Laboratory Co. of America in the first quarter valued at about $30,000. Innealta Capital LLC acquired a new stake in Laboratory Co. of America during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Family Firm Inc. acquired a new stake in Laboratory Co. of America during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $37,000. Finally, McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. increased its holdings 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 owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Laboratory Co. of America Stock Up 0.4 %

LH stock opened at $216.00 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.77, a current ratio of 0.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $224.38 and its 200 day simple moving average is $211.92. The stock has a market cap of $18.21 billion, a PE ratio of 43.46, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.74 and a beta of 1.05. Laboratory Co. of America Holdings 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 announced its quarterly 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 company had revenue of $3.22 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.19 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $3.42 earnings per share. Laboratory Co. of America’s revenue was up 6.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Laboratory Co. of America Holdings will post 14.61 EPS for the current year.

Laboratory Co. of America Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 13th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, August 29th were given a dividend of $0.72 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, August 29th. This represents a $2.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.33%. Laboratory Co. of America’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 57.95%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on LH. Barclays raised their price target on shares of Laboratory Co. of America from $213.00 to $249.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, August 2nd. UBS Group upped their target price on shares of Laboratory Co. of America from $260.00 to $270.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price objective on Laboratory Co. of America from $245.00 to $265.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, September 23rd. Piper Sandler started coverage on Laboratory Co. of America in a research report on Tuesday. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $235.00 target price for the company. Finally, Truist Financial upped their price target on Laboratory Co. of America from $255.00 to $275.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, August 2nd. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Laboratory Co. of America presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $253.00.

Insider Transactions at Laboratory Co. of America

In other Laboratory Co. of America news, EVP Der Vaart Sandra D. Van sold 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, August 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $227.05, for a total transaction of $454,100.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 3,670 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $833,273.50. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other news, EVP Der Vaart Sandra D. Van sold 2,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $227.05, for a total transaction of $454,100.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 3,670 shares in the company, valued at approximately $833,273.50. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CFO Glenn A. Eisenberg sold 15,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 31,289 shares in the company, valued at $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. In the last three months, insiders sold 29,679 shares of company stock valued at $6,716,306. Company insiders own 0.85% of the company’s stock.

Laboratory Co. of America 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).