Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. Purchases 29,046 Shares of Laboratory Co. of America Holdings (NYSE:LH)

Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. raised its position in Laboratory Co. of America Holdings (NYSE:LH) by 1.5% during the third quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 1,978,686 shares of the medical research company’s stock after purchasing an additional 29,046 shares during the period. Laboratory Co. of America makes up 1.8% of Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 20th biggest position. Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Laboratory Co. of America were worth $442,197,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in LH. Kennebec Savings Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Laboratory Co. of America during the third quarter valued at $42,000. Jensen Investment Management Inc. boosted its position in Laboratory Co. of America by 2.5% in the 3rd quarter. Jensen Investment Management Inc. now owns 36,590 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $8,177,000 after buying an additional 900 shares during the period. Covestor Ltd bought a new position in Laboratory Co. of America in the 3rd quarter worth about $195,000. Sheets Smith Wealth Management increased its position in shares of Laboratory Co. of America by 6.1% during the third quarter. Sheets Smith Wealth Management now owns 2,776 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $620,000 after acquiring an additional 159 shares during the period. Finally, Tompkins Financial Corp bought a new stake in shares of Laboratory Co. of America during the third quarter valued at approximately $223,000. Institutional investors own 95.94% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Laboratory Co. of America

In other Laboratory Co. of America news, CFO Glenn A. Eisenberg sold 15,000 shares of Laboratory Co. of America stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 15th. The shares were 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 approximately $7,008,423.11. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other news, CFO Glenn A. Eisenberg sold 15,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $223.99, for a total value of $3,359,850.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 31,289 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,008,423.11. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Kerrii B. Anderson sold 1,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, October 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $230.00, for a total value of $230,000.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 13,722 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,156,060. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 18,000 shares of company stock worth $4,043,950 over the last quarter. Insiders own 0.85% of the company’s stock.

Laboratory Co. of America Stock Performance

LH opened at $242.39 on Monday. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $223.02 and its 200-day moving average price is $214.34. The company has a market cap of $20.27 billion, a P/E ratio of 46.88, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.99 and a beta of 1.05. The company has a quick ratio of 1.30, a current ratio of 1.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66. Laboratory Co. of America Holdings has a 52-week low of $191.97 and a 52-week high of $243.78.

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

Laboratory Co. of America Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 13th. Investors of record on Tuesday, November 26th will be issued a dividend of $0.72 per share. 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%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

LH has been the topic of several research reports. Hsbc Global Res upgraded Laboratory Co. of America from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Bank of America upped their price objective on shares of Laboratory Co. of America from $240.00 to $260.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, August 5th. Truist Financial upped their price target on shares of Laboratory Co. of America from $255.00 to $275.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, August 2nd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their price objective on shares of Laboratory Co. of America from $220.00 to $230.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, August 2nd. Finally, Evercore ISI dropped their target price on Laboratory Co. of America from $250.00 to $240.00 and set an “in-line” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, September 24th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $255.92.

Laboratory Co. of America Company Profile

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.