Evercore ISI Trims Laboratory Co. of America (NYSE:LH) Target Price to $240.00

Laboratory Co. of America (NYSE:LH) had its target price reduced by Evercore ISI from $250.00 to $240.00 in a report released on Tuesday morning, Benzinga reports. They currently have an in-line rating on the medical research company’s stock.

A number of other research analysts have also recently issued reports on LH. Robert W. Baird lifted their target price on Laboratory Co. of America from $278.00 to $282.00 and gave the company an outperform rating in a research report on Friday, September 20th. StockNews.com raised shares of Laboratory Co. of America from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 20th. Truist Financial boosted their target price on shares of Laboratory Co. of America from $255.00 to $275.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. Bank of America increased their price target 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, Barclays boosted their price objective on Laboratory Co. of America from $213.00 to $249.00 and gave the stock an equal weight rating in a research report on Friday, August 2nd. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus target price of $254.50.

Laboratory Co. of America Trading Up 0.8 %

Shares of Laboratory Co. of America stock opened at $220.28 on Tuesday. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $223.22 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $211.61. The company has a market capitalization of $18.57 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 44.32, a PEG ratio of 1.74 and a beta of 1.06. The company has a quick ratio of 0.77, a current ratio of 0.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39. Laboratory Co. of America has a 12-month low of $191.97 and a 12-month high of $238.46.

Laboratory Co. of America (NYSE:LH) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 1st. The medical research company reported $3.94 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.78 by $0.16. The business had revenue of $3.22 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.19 billion. Laboratory Co. of America had a net margin of 3.60% and a return on equity of 15.39%. The company’s revenue was up 6.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $3.42 earnings per share. On average, analysts forecast that Laboratory Co. of America will post 14.61 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Laboratory Co. of America Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 13th. Investors of record on Thursday, August 29th were issued a $0.72 dividend. This represents a $2.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.31%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, August 29th. Laboratory Co. of America’s payout ratio is presently 57.95%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Der Vaart Sandra D. Van sold 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, August 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $227.05, for a total transaction of $454,100.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 3,670 shares in the company, valued at $833,273.50. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. In related news, EVP Der Vaart Sandra D. Van sold 2,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $227.05, for a total transaction of $454,100.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 3,670 shares in the company, valued at approximately $833,273.50. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Lance Berberian sold 12,093 shares of Laboratory Co. of America stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $229.10, for a total value of $2,770,506.30. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 15,921 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,647,501.10. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 29,679 shares of company stock worth $6,716,306. 0.85% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Laboratory Co. of America

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Sanctuary Advisors LLC bought a new position in Laboratory Co. of America in the second quarter worth approximately $2,268,000. Delphi Management Inc. MA lifted its holdings in shares of Laboratory Co. of America by 134.9% in the 2nd quarter. Delphi Management Inc. MA now owns 8,246 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $1,678,000 after purchasing an additional 4,736 shares in the last quarter. 3Chopt Investment Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Laboratory Co. of America in the 2nd quarter valued at $1,318,000. EP Wealth Advisors LLC increased its stake in Laboratory Co. of America by 27.0% during the 2nd quarter. EP Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,226 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $250,000 after purchasing an additional 261 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Brandes Investment Partners LP raised its holdings in Laboratory Co. of America by 25.3% during the second quarter. Brandes Investment Partners LP now owns 494,068 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $100,609,000 after buying an additional 99,912 shares during the last quarter. 95.94% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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).