Brokerages Set Laboratory Co. of America Holdings (NYSE:LH) Price Target at $250.82

Laboratory Co. of America Holdings (NYSE:LH) has been given an average rating of “Moderate Buy” by the twelve brokerages that are currently covering the stock, Marketbeat reports. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and nine have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12-month price target among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $250.82.

Several equities analysts have recently commented on the company. Bank of America upped their target price on Laboratory Co. of America from $240.00 to $260.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, August 5th. StockNews.com upgraded Laboratory Co. of America from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 20th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on shares of Laboratory Co. of America from $261.00 to $243.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, May 30th. UBS Group lifted their price objective on shares of Laboratory Co. of America from $260.00 to $270.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, August 2nd. Finally, Barclays upped their target price on shares of Laboratory Co. of America from $213.00 to $249.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, August 2nd.

Laboratory Co. of America Stock Up 0.5 %

Shares of NYSE:LH opened at $221.13 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $18.57 billion, a PE ratio of 44.49, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.68 and a beta of 1.06. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $220.51 and a 200 day simple moving average of $211.27. The company has a current ratio of 0.88, a quick ratio of 0.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39. Laboratory Co. of America has a 12-month low of $191.97 and a 12-month high of $238.46.

Laboratory Co. of America (NYSE:LH) last posted its quarterly 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. Laboratory Co. of America had a return on equity of 15.39% and a net margin of 3.60%. The business had revenue of $3.22 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.19 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $3.42 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Laboratory Co. of America will post 14.67 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Laboratory Co. of America Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 13th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 29th were given a dividend of $0.72 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, August 29th. This represents a $2.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.30%. Laboratory Co. of America’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 57.95%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Laboratory Co. of America news, CFO Glenn A. Eisenberg sold 15,000 shares of Laboratory Co. of America stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $223.99, for a total transaction of $3,359,850.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 31,289 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,008,423.11. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In other Laboratory Co. of America news, EVP Lance Berberian sold 12,093 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the executive vice president now owns 15,921 shares in the company, valued at $3,647,501.10. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CFO Glenn A. Eisenberg sold 15,000 shares of the firm’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 sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 31,289 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,008,423.11. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 29,679 shares of company stock worth $6,716,306 over the last ninety days. 0.85% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Laboratory Co. of America

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Industrial Alliance Investment Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Laboratory Co. of America in the second quarter worth $27,000. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Laboratory Co. of America in the first quarter valued at about $30,000. Innealta Capital LLC bought a new position in shares of Laboratory Co. of America in the second quarter worth about $32,000. Family Firm Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Laboratory Co. of America during the 2nd quarter worth about $37,000. Finally, McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. boosted its stake in Laboratory Co. of America by 313.2% during the 1st quarter. McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 219 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $48,000 after purchasing an additional 166 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 95.94% of the company’s stock.

Laboratory Co. of America Company Profile

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).