Hartford Investment Management Co. Lowers Stake in Laboratory Co. of America Holdings (NYSE:LH)

Hartford Investment Management Co. decreased its holdings in shares of Laboratory Co. of America Holdings (NYSE:LH) by 1.9% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 5,148 shares of the medical research company’s stock after selling 100 shares during the period. Hartford Investment Management Co.’s holdings in Laboratory Co. of America were worth $1,181,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in LH. Mill Creek Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Laboratory Co. of America during the fourth quarter valued at $347,000. Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC increased its holdings in shares of Laboratory Co. of America by 132.6% during the fourth quarter. Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC now owns 3,056 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $701,000 after acquiring an additional 1,742 shares in the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC raised its position in shares of Laboratory Co. of America by 0.5% in the 4th quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 8,025 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $1,840,000 after purchasing an additional 43 shares during the last quarter. Apollon Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Laboratory Co. of America in the 4th quarter worth about $249,000. Finally, Cidel Asset Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Laboratory Co. of America during the 4th quarter valued at about $205,000. 95.94% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Laboratory Co. of America Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE LH opened at $246.74 on Friday. Laboratory Co. of America Holdings has a 12-month low of $191.97 and a 12-month high of $258.59. The firm has a market capitalization of $20.64 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.98, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.84 and a beta of 1.07. The company has a current ratio of 1.44, a quick ratio of 1.30 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $237.13 and a 200 day moving average of $230.66.

Laboratory Co. of America (NYSE:LH) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The medical research company reported $3.45 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.40 by $0.05. Laboratory Co. of America had a net margin of 5.73% and a return on equity of 15.29%. On average, research analysts anticipate that Laboratory Co. of America Holdings will post 15.96 earnings per share for the current year.

Laboratory Co. of America Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 12th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, February 27th will be paid a $0.72 dividend. This represents a $2.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.17%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, February 27th. Laboratory Co. of America’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 32.65%.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Der Vaart Sandra D. Van sold 1,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, November 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $239.42, for a total transaction of $239,420.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 2,670 shares in the company, valued at $639,251.40. This trade represents a 27.25 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Glenn A. Eisenberg sold 11,711 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, December 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $240.43, for a total transaction of $2,815,675.73. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 31,289 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,522,814.27. This represents a 27.23 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 24,504 shares of company stock valued at $5,905,692 in the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.85% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on LH shares. Evercore ISI upgraded shares of Laboratory Co. of America from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating and upped their target price for the stock from $260.00 to $265.00 in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Bank of America upped their price objective on Laboratory Co. of America from $262.00 to $271.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, December 13th. StockNews.com upgraded Laboratory Co. of America from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price objective on Laboratory Co. of America from $275.00 to $290.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, UBS Group decreased their target price on Laboratory Co. of America from $293.00 to $286.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $265.31.

Laboratory Co. of America Profile

Labcorp Holdings, Inc engages in providing medical testing services. The company was founded on April 16, 2024 and is headquartered in Burlington, NC.