Dana Investment Advisors Inc. Reduces Stock Position in Laboratory Co. of America Holdings (NYSE:LH)

Dana Investment Advisors Inc. lowered its holdings in shares of Laboratory Co. of America Holdings (NYSE:LH) by 10.4% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 8,678 shares of the medical research company’s stock after selling 1,006 shares during the quarter. Dana Investment Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Laboratory Co. of America were worth $1,990,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of LH. SouthState Corp purchased a new stake in shares of Laboratory Co. of America in the 3rd quarter worth $28,000. Fortitude Family Office LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Laboratory Co. of America by 312.5% in the 4th quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 132 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 100 shares during the period. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Laboratory Co. of America by 309.8% in the 4th quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 168 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $39,000 after buying an additional 127 shares during the period. Human Investing LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Laboratory Co. of America in the 4th quarter worth $39,000. Finally, Kennebec Savings Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Laboratory Co. of America in the 3rd quarter worth $42,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 95.94% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, COO Mark S. Schroeder sold 5,339 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $249.23, for a total value of $1,330,638.97. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 4,960 shares in the company, valued at $1,236,180.80. This represents a 51.84 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Adam H. Schechter sold 6,121 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $244.62, for a total value of $1,497,319.02. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 86,445 shares in the company, valued at $21,146,175.90. The trade was a 6.61 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 14,500 shares of company stock valued at $3,577,572. Company insiders own 0.85% of the company’s stock.

Laboratory Co. of America Stock Down 0.4 %

Shares of LH stock opened at $253.00 on Friday. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $243.68 and its 200-day simple moving average is $233.67. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67, a quick ratio of 1.30 and a current ratio of 1.44. The firm has a market capitalization of $21.18 billion, a PE ratio of 28.68, a P/E/G ratio of 1.71 and a beta of 1.07. Laboratory Co. of America Holdings has a fifty-two week low of $191.97 and a fifty-two week high of $258.59.

Laboratory Co. of America (NYSE:LH) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The medical research company reported $3.45 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.40 by $0.05. Laboratory Co. of America had a return on equity of 15.29% and a net margin of 5.73%. Equities analysts expect that Laboratory Co. of America Holdings will post 16.01 earnings per share for the current year.

Laboratory Co. of America Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 12th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, February 27th will be issued a $0.72 dividend. This represents a $2.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.14%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, February 27th. Laboratory Co. of America’s dividend payout ratio is presently 32.65%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

LH has been the subject of several research reports. Bank of America upped their target price on Laboratory Co. of America from $262.00 to $271.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, December 13th. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price objective on 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. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on Laboratory Co. of America from $260.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. UBS Group decreased their price objective on Laboratory Co. of America from $293.00 to $286.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. Finally, Barclays decreased their price objective on Laboratory Co. of America from $271.00 to $260.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Laboratory Co. of America currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $268.38.

Laboratory Co. of America Company Profile

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