National Bank of Canada FI Lowers Holdings in Laboratory Co. of America Holdings (NYSE:LH)

National Bank of Canada FI trimmed its holdings in Laboratory Co. of America Holdings (NYSE:LH) by 64.5% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 9,636 shares of the medical research company’s stock after selling 17,525 shares during the period. National Bank of Canada FI’s holdings in Laboratory Co. of America were worth $1,957,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Industrial Alliance Investment Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Laboratory Co. of America in the second quarter worth about $27,000. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Laboratory Co. of America in the first quarter worth about $30,000. Innealta Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Laboratory Co. of America in the second quarter worth about $32,000. Family Firm Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Laboratory Co. of America in the second quarter worth about $37,000. Finally, McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. lifted its position in shares of Laboratory Co. of America by 313.2% in the first quarter. McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 219 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $48,000 after buying an additional 166 shares in the last quarter. 95.94% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on LH shares. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their price objective on Laboratory Co. of America from $220.00 to $230.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, August 2nd. Robert W. Baird upped their price objective on Laboratory Co. of America from $261.00 to $277.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, August 2nd. Truist Financial upped 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. decreased their price objective on Laboratory Co. of America from $261.00 to $243.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, May 30th. Finally, Bank of America upped their price objective on Laboratory Co. of America from $240.00 to $260.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, August 5th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Laboratory Co. of America has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $250.82.

Laboratory Co. of America Stock Down 0.9 %

Shares of NYSE:LH opened at $218.29 on Thursday. Laboratory Co. of America Holdings has a 52-week low of $191.97 and a 52-week high of $238.46. The stock has a market cap of $18.40 billion, a P/E ratio of 43.92, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 1.06. The business’s 50 day moving average is $219.85 and its 200 day moving average is $211.17. The company has a quick ratio of 0.77, a current ratio of 0.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39.

Laboratory Co. of America (NYSE:LH) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The medical research company reported $3.94 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.78 by $0.16. The business had revenue of $3.22 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.19 billion. Laboratory Co. of America had a return on equity of 15.39% and a net margin of 3.60%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $3.42 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that Laboratory Co. of America Holdings will post 14.67 EPS for the current year.

Laboratory Co. of America Announces Dividend

The business 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 dividend of $0.72 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 29th. This represents a $2.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.32%. Laboratory Co. of America’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 57.95%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Laboratory Co. of America

In other news, EVP Lance Berberian sold 12,093 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $229.10, for a total transaction of $2,770,506.30. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 15,921 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,647,501.10. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In related news, Director Kerrii B. Anderson sold 586 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction 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 in the company, valued at approximately $3,312,450. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Lance Berberian sold 12,093 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $229.10, for a total value of $2,770,506.30. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 15,921 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,647,501.10. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 29,679 shares of company stock valued at $6,716,306. 0.85% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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).