Handelsbanken Fonder AB Boosts Stake in Laboratory Co. of America Holdings (NYSE:LH)

Handelsbanken Fonder AB raised its position in Laboratory Co. of America Holdings (NYSE:LH) by 25.1% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 54,553 shares of the medical research company’s stock after purchasing an additional 10,933 shares during the quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB owned 0.06% of Laboratory Co. of America worth $12,399,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in LH. Provence Wealth Management Group purchased a new stake in Laboratory Co. of America in the 3rd quarter worth about $29,000. Mendota Financial Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Laboratory Co. of America during the fourth quarter worth approximately $29,000. Tradewinds Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Laboratory Co. of America during the third quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC bought a new stake in shares of Laboratory Co. of America during the third quarter valued at approximately $37,000. Finally, Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC bought a new stake in shares of Laboratory Co. of America during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $60,000. 95.94% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have recently weighed in on LH shares. TheStreet downgraded shares of Laboratory Co. of America from a “b-” rating to a “c+” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 15th. SVB Leerink started coverage on shares of Laboratory Co. of America in a research note on Monday, February 26th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $260.00 price target for the company. Argus raised shares of Laboratory Co. of America from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $250.00 price target for the company in a research note on Monday, March 25th. Evercore ISI started coverage on shares of Laboratory Co. of America in a research note on Friday, February 9th. They set an “in-line” rating and a $240.00 price target for the company. Finally, Leerink Partnrs reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Laboratory Co. of America in a research note on Monday, February 26th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Laboratory Co. of America has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $243.50.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, COO Mark S. Schroeder sold 6,477 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, April 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $217.29, for a total transaction of $1,407,387.33. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 5,036 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,094,272.44. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. In other news, EVP Der Vaart Sandra D. Van sold 259 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $222.06, for a total transaction of $57,513.54. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 7,637 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,695,872.22. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, COO Mark S. Schroeder sold 6,477 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, April 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $217.29, for a total transaction of $1,407,387.33. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 5,036 shares in the company, valued at $1,094,272.44. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 54,305 shares of company stock valued at $11,761,059. 0.85% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Laboratory Co. of America Price Performance

NYSE LH opened at $207.92 on Wednesday. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $212.94 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $214.85. The company has a current ratio of 1.17, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52. Laboratory Co. of America Holdings has a 12-month low of $174.20 and a 12-month high of $234.09. The firm has a market capitalization of $17.49 billion, a P/E ratio of 44.52, a P/E/G ratio of 1.53 and a beta of 1.01.

Laboratory Co. of America (NYSE:LH) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 15th. The medical research company reported $3.30 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.29 by $0.01. Laboratory Co. of America had a net margin of 3.24% and a return on equity of 13.99%. The business had revenue of $3.03 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.02 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $4.14 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 17.5% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts forecast that Laboratory Co. of America Holdings will post 14.84 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Laboratory Co. of America Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, June 12th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, May 28th will be issued a $0.72 dividend. This represents a $2.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.39%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 24th. Laboratory Co. of America’s dividend payout ratio is currently 61.67%.

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).