Analysts Set Laboratory Co. of America Holdings (NYSE:LH) Target Price at $263.77

Laboratory Co. of America Holdings (NYSE:LH) has been assigned a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the sixteen analysts that are currently covering the stock, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, twelve have given a buy recommendation and one has given a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 1-year target price among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $265.31.

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on shares of Laboratory Co. of America from $260.00 to $270.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. HSBC raised shares of Laboratory Co. of America from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price target on shares of Laboratory Co. of America from $275.00 to $290.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. StockNews.com raised shares of Laboratory Co. of America from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Finally, Hsbc Global Res raised shares of Laboratory Co. of America from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Kerrii B. Anderson sold 1,000 shares of Laboratory Co. of America stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $235.00, for a total value of $235,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 12,722 shares in the company, valued at $2,989,670. This trade represents a 7.29 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Glenn A. Eisenberg sold 11,711 shares of Laboratory Co. of America stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $240.43, for a total transaction of $2,815,675.73. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 31,289 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,522,814.27. This trade represents a 27.23 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 18,383 shares of company stock worth $4,408,373. Corporate insiders own 0.85% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Laboratory Co. of America

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Thoroughbred Financial Services LLC raised its position in Laboratory Co. of America by 33.2% during the 4th quarter. Thoroughbred Financial Services LLC now owns 2,019 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $462,000 after buying an additional 503 shares during the last quarter. Pitcairn Co. purchased a new position in Laboratory Co. of America during the 4th quarter worth approximately $261,000. Cinctive Capital Management LP purchased a new position in Laboratory Co. of America during the 4th quarter worth approximately $5,754,000. Huntington National Bank raised its position in Laboratory Co. of America by 12.5% during the 4th quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 1,261 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $289,000 after buying an additional 140 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Headlands Technologies LLC purchased a new position in Laboratory Co. of America during the 4th quarter worth approximately $191,000. 95.94% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Laboratory Co. of America Price Performance

LH stock opened at $241.05 on Friday. Laboratory Co. of America has a 52 week low of $191.97 and a 52 week high of $258.59. The company has a quick ratio of 1.30, a current ratio of 1.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $236.85 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $230.48. The firm has a market capitalization of $20.16 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.33, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.84 and a beta of 1.07.

Laboratory Co. of America (NYSE:LH) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The medical research company reported $3.45 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.40 by $0.05. Laboratory Co. of America had a net margin of 5.73% and a return on equity of 15.29%. Analysts anticipate that Laboratory Co. of America will post 15.96 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Laboratory Co. of America Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 12th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, February 27th will be issued a dividend of $0.72 per share. This represents a $2.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.19%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, February 27th. Laboratory Co. of America’s payout ratio is 32.65%.

About Laboratory Co. of America

Labcorp Holdings, Inc engages in providing medical testing services. The company was founded on April 16, 2024 and is headquartered in Burlington, NC.