Insider Selling: Laboratory Co. of America Holdings (NYSE:LH) EVP Sells 1,000 Shares of Stock

Laboratory Co. of America Holdings (NYSE:LH) EVP Der Vaart Sandra D. Van sold 1,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, November 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $239.42, for a total transaction of $239,420.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 2,670 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $639,251.40. This trade represents a 27.25 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link.

Laboratory Co. of America Price Performance

LH stock opened at $242.18 on Thursday. Laboratory Co. of America Holdings has a 1 year low of $191.97 and a 1 year high of $247.99. The stock has a market capitalization of $20.26 billion, a PE ratio of 46.84, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.99 and a beta of 1.05. The company’s 50-day moving average is $226.97 and its 200-day moving average is $217.78. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66, a current ratio of 1.44 and a quick ratio of 1.30.

Laboratory Co. of America (NYSE:LH) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 24th. The medical research company reported $3.50 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.48 by $0.02. Laboratory Co. of America had a return on equity of 15.27% and a net margin of 3.43%. The firm had revenue of $3.28 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.26 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $3.38 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts expect that Laboratory Co. of America Holdings will post 14.53 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Laboratory Co. of America Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed 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 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.19%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, November 26th. Laboratory Co. of America’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 55.71%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in LH. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD boosted its stake in Laboratory Co. of America by 2.6% during the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 114,488 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $25,012,000 after purchasing an additional 2,934 shares during the last quarter. Great Valley Advisor Group Inc. bought a new stake in Laboratory Co. of America during the second quarter worth $473,000. OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC raised its position in Laboratory Co. of America by 115.7% in the 3rd quarter. OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC now owns 6,088 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $1,361,000 after buying an additional 3,265 shares during the last quarter. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale lifted its stake in Laboratory Co. of America by 13.8% during the 1st quarter. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale now owns 187,286 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $40,259,000 after acquiring an additional 22,759 shares in the last quarter. Finally, SG Americas Securities LLC boosted its holdings in Laboratory Co. of America by 35.4% during the 2nd quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 31,435 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $6,397,000 after acquiring an additional 8,218 shares during the last quarter. 95.94% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on the stock. Hsbc Global Res upgraded shares of Laboratory Co. of America from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Truist Financial lifted their target price on Laboratory Co. of America from $255.00 to $275.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, August 2nd. Robert W. Baird increased their price target on Laboratory Co. of America from $282.00 to $289.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, October 25th. HSBC raised Laboratory Co. of America from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group increased their target price on shares of Laboratory Co. of America from $245.00 to $265.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, September 23rd. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $255.92.

About Laboratory Co. of America

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.