Laboratory Co. of America Holdings (NYSE:LH) Short Interest Update

Laboratory Co. of America Holdings (NYSE:LH) was the target of a large decline in short interest in the month of July. As of July 31st, there was short interest totalling 1,890,000 shares, a decline of 7.8% from the July 15th total of 2,050,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 672,900 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 2.8 days. Approximately 2.3% of the company’s shares are short sold.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts recently commented on the stock. UBS Group boosted their price objective on shares of Laboratory Co. of America from $260.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. Bank of America boosted their price target on Laboratory Co. of America from $240.00 to $260.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, August 5th. Truist Financial raised their price objective 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. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on Laboratory Co. of America from $261.00 to $243.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, May 30th. Finally, Evercore ISI raised their price target on Laboratory Co. of America from $210.00 to $215.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 9th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Laboratory Co. of America presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $247.42.

Laboratory Co. of America Stock Performance

Shares of LH stock opened at $227.50 on Monday. The firm has a market capitalization of $19.18 billion, a PE ratio of 45.77, a P/E/G ratio of 1.76 and a beta of 1.05. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $210.92 and a 200-day moving average price of $210.30. Laboratory Co. of America has a 52 week low of $191.97 and a 52 week high of $238.46. The company has a quick ratio of 0.76, a current ratio of 0.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39.

Laboratory Co. of America (NYSE:LH) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The medical research company reported $3.94 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.78 by $0.16. The business had revenue of $3.22 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.19 billion. Laboratory Co. of America had a net margin of 3.60% and a return on equity of 15.39%. The firm’s revenue was up 6.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $3.42 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Laboratory Co. of America will post 14.84 earnings per share for the current year.

Laboratory Co. of America Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 13th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, August 29th will be given a $0.72 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, August 29th. This represents a $2.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.27%. Laboratory Co. of America’s payout ratio is 57.95%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Laboratory Co. of America

In other news, Director Kerrii B. Anderson sold 586 shares of Laboratory Co. of America stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $225.00, for a total transaction of $131,850.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 14,722 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,312,450. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In other news, Director Kerrii B. Anderson sold 586 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $225.00, for a total value of $131,850.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 14,722 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,312,450. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Lance Berberian sold 12,093 shares of Laboratory Co. of America stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $229.10, for a total value of $2,770,506.30. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 15,921 shares in the company, valued at $3,647,501.10. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.85% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Laboratory Co. of America

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Manchester Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in Laboratory Co. of America by 1.1% during the fourth quarter. Manchester Capital Management LLC now owns 4,159 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $945,000 after buying an additional 45 shares during the last quarter. Insight Inv LLC grew its position in shares of Laboratory Co. of America by 1.3% during the 2nd quarter. Insight Inv LLC now owns 3,530 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $718,000 after acquiring an additional 45 shares during the period. SP Asset Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Laboratory Co. of America by 0.3% in the 4th quarter. SP Asset Management LLC now owns 14,992 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $3,407,000 after purchasing an additional 46 shares in the last quarter. Athena Investment Management raised its holdings in Laboratory Co. of America by 4.8% in the 2nd quarter. Athena Investment Management now owns 1,040 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $212,000 after purchasing an additional 48 shares during the period. Finally, Unison Advisors LLC lifted its position in Laboratory Co. of America by 0.5% during the first quarter. Unison Advisors LLC now owns 11,053 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $2,415,000 after purchasing an additional 51 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 95.94% of the company’s stock.

About Laboratory Co. of America

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).