BlackDiamond Wealth Management LLC Grows Stock Holdings in Laboratory Co. of America Holdings (NYSE:LH)

BlackDiamond Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in Laboratory Co. of America Holdings (NYSE:LH) by 10.6% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 2,390 shares of the medical research company’s stock after purchasing an additional 229 shares during the quarter. BlackDiamond Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Laboratory Co. of America were worth $525,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Alexander Randolph Advisory Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Laboratory Co. of America during the 4th quarter valued at $942,000. Handelsinvest Investeringsforvaltning acquired a new position in shares of Laboratory Co. of America during the 4th quarter valued at $1,091,000. Cerity Partners LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Laboratory Co. of America by 8.6% during the 4th 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 in the last quarter. Duality Advisers LP acquired a new position in shares of Laboratory Co. of America during the 4th quarter valued at $2,786,000. Finally, Westpac Banking Corp lifted its holdings in Laboratory Co. of America by 10.2% in the 4th quarter. Westpac Banking Corp now owns 5,975 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $1,358,000 after buying an additional 555 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 95.94% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on LH shares. Evercore ISI assumed coverage on shares of Laboratory Co. of America in a research report on Friday, February 9th. They issued an “in-line” rating and a $240.00 target price for the company. SVB Leerink began coverage on shares of Laboratory Co. of America in a research note on Monday, February 26th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $260.00 price target on the stock. Leerink Partnrs restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Laboratory Co. of America in a research note on Monday, February 26th. Truist Financial decreased their price objective on shares of Laboratory Co. of America from $270.00 to $255.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, April 26th. Finally, Robert W. Baird decreased their price objective on shares of Laboratory Co. of America from $255.00 to $244.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, April 26th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $243.14.

Insider Activity at Laboratory Co. of America

In other Laboratory Co. of America news, CMO Amy B. Summy sold 227 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $218.45, for a total value 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 $842,998.55. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In related news, COO Mark S. Schroeder sold 5,048 shares of the business’s 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 $1,102,735.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 5,036 shares in the company, valued at $1,100,114.20. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CMO Amy B. Summy sold 227 shares of the business’s 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 transaction, the chief marketing officer now owns 3,859 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $842,998.55. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 23,744 shares of company stock valued at $5,111,382 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.85% of the company’s stock.

Laboratory Co. of America Stock Performance

NYSE LH traded down $2.45 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $198.74. The company had a trading volume of 247,594 shares, compared to its average volume of 746,940. The company has a quick ratio of 0.76, a current ratio of 0.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39. The stock has a market cap of $16.75 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.24, a P/E/G ratio of 1.54 and a beta of 1.02. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $207.52 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $215.29. Laboratory Co. of America Holdings has a fifty-two week low of $174.20 and a fifty-two week high of $234.09.

Laboratory Co. of America (NYSE:LH) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The medical research company reported $3.68 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.48 by $0.20. The company had revenue of $3.18 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.12 billion. Laboratory Co. of America had a net margin of 3.52% and a return on equity of 14.68%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 4.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business posted $3.82 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that Laboratory Co. of America Holdings will post 14.87 earnings per share 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. Investors of record on Tuesday, May 28th will be issued a dividend of $0.72 per share. This represents a $2.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.45%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 24th. Laboratory Co. of America’s dividend payout ratio is currently 57.95%.

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).