Laboratory Co. of America (NYSE:LH) PT Raised to $260.00 at Bank of America

Laboratory Co. of America (NYSE:LH) had its target price hoisted by Bank of America from $240.00 to $260.00 in a research note published on Monday, Benzinga reports. They currently have a buy rating on the medical research company’s stock.

Other equities analysts have also issued reports about the stock. UBS Group upped their price target on shares of Laboratory Co. of America from $260.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a research report on Friday, August 2nd. StockNews.com lowered shares of Laboratory Co. of America from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 4th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped 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. Robert W. Baird upped their price target on shares of Laboratory Co. of America from $261.00 to $277.00 and gave the stock an outperform rating in a research report on Friday, August 2nd. Finally, Evercore ISI upped their price target on shares of Laboratory Co. of America from $210.00 to $215.00 and gave the stock an in-line rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 9th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average price target of $249.15.

Laboratory Co. of America Stock Down 2.9 %

LH opened at $219.36 on Monday. Laboratory Co. of America has a twelve month low of $191.97 and a twelve month high of $238.46. The stock has a market capitalization of $18.49 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 44.14, a PEG ratio of 1.76 and a beta of 1.05. The company has a quick ratio of 0.76, a current ratio of 0.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $206.94 and a 200-day moving average price of $210.44.

Laboratory Co. of America (NYSE:LH) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The medical research company reported $3.94 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.78 by $0.16. Laboratory Co. of America had a net margin of 3.60% and a return on equity of 15.39%. The business had revenue of $3.22 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.19 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $3.42 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 6.2% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts forecast that Laboratory Co. of America will post 14.84 earnings per share for the current year.

Laboratory Co. of America Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 13th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 29th will be paid a $0.72 dividend. This represents a $2.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.31%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 29th. Laboratory Co. of America’s dividend payout ratio is currently 57.95%.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Der Vaart Sandra D. Van sold 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $210.83, for a total value of $421,660.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 5,637 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,188,448.71. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In related news, EVP Lance Berberian sold 12,093 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 5th. The shares were 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 of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,647,501.10. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Der Vaart Sandra D. Van sold 2,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $210.83, for a total transaction of $421,660.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 5,637 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,188,448.71. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.85% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in LH. Industrial Alliance Investment Management Inc. purchased a new position in Laboratory Co. of America in the 2nd quarter worth about $27,000. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC purchased a new position in Laboratory Co. of America during the 1st quarter valued at about $30,000. Innealta Capital LLC purchased a new position in Laboratory Co. of America during the 2nd quarter valued at about $32,000. Family Firm Inc. purchased a new position in Laboratory Co. of America during the 2nd quarter valued at about $37,000. Finally, McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. increased its position 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. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 95.94% of the company’s stock.

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).