Mcrae Capital Management Inc. Has $16.77 Million Holdings in Laboratory Co. of America Holdings (NYSE:LH)

Mcrae Capital Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Laboratory Co. of America Holdings (NYSE:LH) by 3.3% during the 2nd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 82,387 shares of the medical research company’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,639 shares during the period. Laboratory Co. of America comprises approximately 3.8% of Mcrae Capital Management Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 10th biggest position. Mcrae Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Laboratory Co. of America were worth $16,767,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC boosted its stake in shares of Laboratory Co. of America by 58.8% during the 1st quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 1,613,854 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $352,563,000 after acquiring an additional 597,571 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Laboratory Co. of America during the fourth quarter worth approximately $291,045,000. Northern Trust Corp grew its holdings in Laboratory Co. of America by 3.0% during the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 1,163,252 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $264,396,000 after purchasing an additional 33,493 shares during the last quarter. Veritas Investment Partners UK Ltd. raised its position in shares of Laboratory Co. of America by 32.5% in the fourth quarter. Veritas Investment Partners UK Ltd. now owns 1,140,300 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $259,133,000 after purchasing an additional 279,628 shares during the period. Finally, Lord Abbett & CO. LLC lifted its stake in shares of Laboratory Co. of America by 2.4% in the first quarter. Lord Abbett & CO. LLC now owns 741,069 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $161,894,000 after buying an additional 17,384 shares during the last quarter. 95.94% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Laboratory Co. of America Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE LH traded up $0.71 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $230.89. The stock had a trading volume of 319,213 shares, compared to its average volume of 704,664. The company has a market cap of $19.46 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 46.46, a PEG ratio of 1.76 and a beta of 1.05. Laboratory Co. of America Holdings has a twelve month low of $191.97 and a twelve month high of $238.46. The business’s fifty day moving average is $214.04 and its two-hundred day moving average is $210.68. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39, a current ratio of 0.88 and a quick ratio of 0.76.

Laboratory Co. of America (NYSE:LH) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 1st. The medical research company reported $3.94 earnings per share (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 company had revenue of $3.22 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.19 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $3.42 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 6.2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts expect that Laboratory Co. of America Holdings will post 14.84 EPS for the current year.

Laboratory Co. of America Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 13th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, August 29th will be issued a dividend of $0.72 per share. This represents a $2.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.25%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, August 29th. Laboratory Co. of America’s payout ratio is 57.95%.

Insider Activity

In other Laboratory Co. of America news, CFO Glenn A. Eisenberg sold 15,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on 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 in the company, valued at $7,008,423.11. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In related news, CFO Glenn A. Eisenberg sold 15,000 shares of Laboratory Co. of America stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $223.99, for a total transaction of $3,359,850.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 31,289 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,008,423.11. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Kerrii B. Anderson sold 586 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $225.00, for a total transaction of $131,850.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 14,722 shares in the company, valued at $3,312,450. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 29,679 shares of company stock worth $6,716,306. Company insiders own 0.85% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms recently issued reports on LH. Truist Financial raised their target price on shares of Laboratory Co. of America from $255.00 to $275.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. Robert W. Baird raised their price target on Laboratory Co. of America from $261.00 to $277.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, August 2nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on 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. Bank of America increased their target price on Laboratory Co. of America from $240.00 to $260.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, August 5th. Finally, UBS Group lifted their price target on 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. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $247.42.

Laboratory Co. of America 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).