Laboratory Co. of America (NYSE:LH) Reaches New 52-Week High – Still a Buy?

Laboratory Co. of America Holdings (NYSE:LH)’s stock price hit a new 52-week high on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $258.88 and last traded at $258.43, with a volume of 111012 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $255.73.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages recently commented on LH. Wall Street Zen lowered Laboratory Co. of America from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, April 18th. Redburn Atlantic assumed coverage on shares of Laboratory Co. of America in a research report on Wednesday, April 2nd. They set a “buy” rating and a $276.00 target price on the stock. Piper Sandler reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $280.00 price target (up previously from $260.00) on shares of Laboratory Co. of America in a research report on Tuesday, May 6th. Citigroup raised Laboratory Co. of America from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $250.00 to $300.00 in a report on Tuesday, March 4th. Finally, Truist Financial raised their target price on Laboratory Co. of America from $274.00 to $290.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, May 12th. Four research 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, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $272.92.

Laboratory Co. of America Stock Up 0.9%

The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $237.68 and its 200-day moving average price is $238.92. 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 company has a market cap of $21.60 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.24, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.71 and a beta of 0.81.

Laboratory Co. of America (NYSE:LH) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The medical research company reported $3.84 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.73 by $0.11. Laboratory Co. of America had a net margin of 5.73% and a return on equity of 15.29%. The company had revenue of $3.35 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.41 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $3.68 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.3% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Laboratory Co. of America Holdings will post 16.01 EPS for the current year.

Laboratory Co. of America Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, June 11th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 29th will be issued a dividend of $0.72 per share. This represents a $2.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.12%. Laboratory Co. of America’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 33.29%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Brian J. Caveney sold 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $247.00, for a total transaction of $494,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 30,067 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,426,549. This represents a 6.24% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Adam H. Schechter sold 6,105 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $248.73, for a total transaction of $1,518,496.65. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 98,962 shares in the company, valued at $24,614,818.26. This trade represents a 5.81% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 11,592 shares of company stock valued at $2,841,820. 0.84% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Laboratory Co. of America

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. eCIO Inc. acquired a new stake in Laboratory Co. of America in the 1st quarter valued at about $94,000. Strs Ohio acquired a new stake in shares of Laboratory Co. of America in the first quarter valued at approximately $23,639,000. IFM Investors Pty Ltd boosted its stake in shares of Laboratory Co. of America by 2.6% during the 1st quarter. IFM Investors Pty Ltd now owns 15,859 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $3,691,000 after acquiring an additional 404 shares during the period. Belpointe Asset Management LLC raised its stake in Laboratory Co. of America by 7.4% in the 1st quarter. Belpointe Asset Management LLC now owns 1,725 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $402,000 after acquiring an additional 119 shares during the period. Finally, Intech Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in Laboratory Co. of America by 245.3% during the 1st quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 11,120 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $2,588,000 after purchasing an additional 7,900 shares during the last quarter. 95.94% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Laboratory Co. of America Company Profile

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