Leerink Partnrs Issues Negative Forecast for LH Earnings

Laboratory Co. of America Holdings (NYSE:LH) – Research analysts at Leerink Partnrs cut their Q4 2024 earnings estimates for Laboratory Co. of America in a research report issued to clients and investors on Monday, January 6th. Leerink Partnrs analyst M. Cherny now anticipates that the medical research company will post earnings of $3.40 per share for the quarter, down from their prior estimate of $3.47. The consensus estimate for Laboratory Co. of America’s current full-year earnings is $14.52 per share. Leerink Partnrs also issued estimates for Laboratory Co. of America’s Q2 2025 earnings at $4.05 EPS, Q3 2025 earnings at $4.16 EPS, Q4 2025 earnings at $4.16 EPS, FY2025 earnings at $16.21 EPS and FY2026 earnings at $17.28 EPS.

A number of other analysts also recently issued reports on the company. Robert W. Baird lifted their price target on Laboratory Co. of America from $282.00 to $289.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, October 25th. 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 note on Friday, October 25th. Hsbc Global Res upgraded shares of Laboratory Co. of America from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Jefferies Financial Group restated a “buy” rating and set a $275.00 price objective (up previously from $265.00) on shares of Laboratory Co. of America in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. Finally, HSBC raised shares of Laboratory Co. of America from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $258.62.

Laboratory Co. of America Price Performance

Laboratory Co. of America stock opened at $229.59 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.44, a quick ratio of 1.30 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $234.15 and a 200-day simple moving average of $223.97. The stock has a market cap of $19.20 billion, a P/E ratio of 44.41, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.91 and a beta of 1.06. Laboratory Co. of America has a 12-month low of $191.97 and a 12-month high of $247.99.

Laboratory Co. of America (NYSE:LH) last released its earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The medical research company reported $3.50 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.48 by $0.02. Laboratory Co. of America had a net margin of 3.43% and a return on equity of 15.27%. The firm had revenue of $3.28 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.26 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $3.38 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 7.4% compared to the same quarter last year.

Laboratory Co. of America Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 13th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, November 26th were paid a dividend of $0.72 per share. This represents a $2.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.25%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, November 26th. Laboratory Co. of America’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 55.71%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CEO Adam H. Schechter sold 6,189 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $243.47, for a total transaction of $1,506,835.83. Following the completion of the transaction, 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 6.61 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Der Vaart Sandra D. Van sold 1,000 shares of Laboratory Co. of America stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, November 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $239.42, for a total value of $239,420.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 2,670 shares in the company, valued at approximately $639,251.40. This trade represents a 27.25 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 24,572 shares of company stock valued at $5,910,209 over the last three months. 0.85% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Laboratory Co. of America

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. SouthState Corp acquired a new stake in shares of Laboratory Co. of America in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $28,000. Horizon Bancorp Inc. IN purchased a new stake in Laboratory Co. of America during the third quarter worth $29,000. Riverview Trust Co grew its holdings in Laboratory Co. of America by 172.6% in the third quarter. Riverview Trust Co now owns 169 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $38,000 after purchasing an additional 107 shares during the last quarter. Concord Wealth Partners increased its position in shares of Laboratory Co. of America by 43.3% in the third quarter. Concord Wealth Partners now owns 172 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $38,000 after buying an additional 52 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Kennebec Savings Bank acquired a new position in shares of Laboratory Co. of America during the 3rd quarter worth $42,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 95.94% of the company’s stock.

About Laboratory Co. of America

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.