Louisiana State Employees Retirement System Makes New $1.16 Million Investment in Laboratory Co. of America Holdings (NYSE:LH)

Louisiana State Employees Retirement System purchased a new stake in Laboratory Co. of America Holdings (NYSE:LH) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund purchased 5,100 shares of the medical research company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,159,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. raised its position in shares of Laboratory Co. of America by 5.1% in the third quarter. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. now owns 25,354 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $5,097,000 after buying an additional 1,237 shares in the last quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. increased its stake in Laboratory Co. of America by 6.0% in the third quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 8,509 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $1,711,000 after acquiring an additional 484 shares during the last quarter. Handelsinvest Investeringsforvaltning bought a new position in Laboratory Co. of America in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,091,000. Cerity Partners LLC increased its stake in Laboratory Co. of America by 8.6% in the fourth quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 64,435 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $14,645,000 after acquiring an additional 5,105 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Salem Investment Counselors Inc. increased its stake in Laboratory Co. of America by 202.4% in the fourth quarter. Salem Investment Counselors Inc. now owns 9,243 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $2,101,000 after acquiring an additional 6,186 shares during the last quarter. 95.94% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CMO Amy B. Summy sold 227 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $218.45, for a total transaction of $49,588.15. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief marketing officer now directly owns 3,859 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $842,998.55. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In related news, COO Mark S. Schroeder sold 6,477 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 approximately $1,094,272.44. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CMO Amy B. Summy sold 227 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $218.45, for a total transaction of $49,588.15. Following the completion of the sale, the chief marketing officer now owns 3,859 shares in the company, valued at $842,998.55. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 54,305 shares of company stock valued at $11,761,059. Corporate insiders own 0.85% of the company’s stock.

Laboratory Co. of America Trading Up 2.4 %

LH opened at $207.92 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52, a current ratio of 1.17 and a quick ratio of 1.02. Laboratory Co. of America Holdings has a fifty-two week low of $174.20 and a fifty-two week high of $234.09. The firm has a market capitalization of $17.49 billion, a PE ratio of 44.52, a P/E/G ratio of 1.51 and a beta of 1.01. The company’s 50-day moving average is $212.94 and its 200 day moving average is $214.85.

Laboratory Co. of America (NYSE:LH) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 15th. The medical research company reported $3.30 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates 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 company had revenue of $3.03 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.02 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $4.14 EPS. The firm’s revenue was down 17.5% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts predict that Laboratory Co. of America Holdings will post 14.84 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Laboratory Co. of America Announces Dividend

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

LH has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Evercore ISI initiated coverage on shares of Laboratory Co. of America in a research note on Friday, February 9th. They issued an “in-line” rating and a $240.00 price objective on the stock. Argus raised shares of Laboratory Co. of America from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $250.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Monday, March 25th. Leerink Partnrs reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Laboratory Co. of America in a research note on Monday, February 26th. SVB Leerink assumed 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 target price on the stock. Finally, Barclays assumed coverage on shares of Laboratory Co. of America in a research note on Wednesday, January 3rd. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $222.00 target price on the stock. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Laboratory Co. of America presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $243.50.

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).