Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. Has $1.17 Million Holdings in Laboratory Co. of America Holdings (NYSE:LH)

Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. trimmed its stake in shares of Laboratory Co. of America Holdings (NYSE:LH) by 8.8% during the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 5,242 shares of the medical research company’s stock after selling 504 shares during the period. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc.’s holdings in Laboratory Co. of America were worth $1,171,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Industrial Alliance Investment Management Inc. acquired a new stake in Laboratory Co. of America in the second quarter worth about $27,000. Horizon Bancorp Inc. IN acquired a new stake in shares of Laboratory Co. of America during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $29,000. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC bought a new stake in shares of Laboratory Co. of America during the first quarter worth approximately $30,000. Innealta Capital LLC acquired a new position in Laboratory Co. of America in the second quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Finally, Family Firm Inc. bought a new position in Laboratory Co. of America in the second quarter valued at approximately $37,000. 95.94% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Laboratory Co. of America Trading Up 0.8 %

Shares of NYSE:LH opened at $246.22 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $20.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 47.62, a PEG ratio of 2.01 and a beta of 1.05. Laboratory Co. of America Holdings has a 12 month low of $191.97 and a 12 month high of $247.99. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $223.60 and its 200 day simple moving average is $215.03. 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 (NYSE:LH) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The medical research company reported $3.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.48 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $3.28 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.26 billion. Laboratory Co. of America had a return on equity of 15.27% and a net margin of 3.43%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $3.38 EPS. As a group, research analysts forecast that Laboratory Co. of America Holdings will post 14.53 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Laboratory Co. of America Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 13th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, November 26th will be paid a dividend of $0.72 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, November 26th. This represents a $2.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.17%. Laboratory Co. of America’s dividend payout ratio is 55.71%.

Insider Activity

In other Laboratory Co. of America news, CEO Adam H. Schechter sold 6,189 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $243.47, for a total value of $1,506,835.83. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 87,441 shares in the company, valued at $21,289,260.27. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. In other Laboratory Co. of America news, CEO Adam H. Schechter sold 6,189 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, November 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $243.47, for a total transaction of $1,506,835.83. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 87,441 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $21,289,260.27. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Kerrii B. Anderson sold 1,000 shares of Laboratory Co. of America stock in a transaction dated Thursday, October 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $230.00, for a total transaction of $230,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 13,722 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,156,060. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 9,189 shares of company stock worth $2,190,936 in the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 0.85% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have commented on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group upped their target price on shares of Laboratory Co. of America from $245.00 to $265.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, September 23rd. Hsbc Global Res raised Laboratory Co. of America from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Barclays boosted their target price on Laboratory Co. of America from $234.00 to $249.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, October 25th. HSBC upgraded shares of Laboratory Co. of America from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, StockNews.com cut shares of Laboratory Co. of America from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, October 25th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price 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.