Laboratory Co. of America (NYSE:LH) Issues FY 2024 Earnings Guidance

Laboratory Co. of America (NYSE:LH) issued an update on its FY 2024 earnings guidance on Thursday morning. The company provided EPS guidance of 14.300-14.700 for the period, compared to the consensus EPS estimate of 14.560. The company issued revenue guidance of $13.0 billion-$13.1 billion, compared to the consensus revenue estimate of $13.0 billion.

Laboratory Co. of America Stock Up 4.6 %

Shares of LH stock traded up $10.17 during trading on Thursday, reaching $230.07. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 1,610,091 shares, compared to its average volume of 668,219. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39, a current ratio of 0.88 and a quick ratio of 0.77. The company has a market capitalization of $19.39 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 46.29, a P/E/G ratio of 1.67 and a beta of 1.05. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $222.47 and its 200 day moving average price is $212.14. Laboratory Co. of America has a 1-year low of $191.97 and a 1-year high of $239.50.

Laboratory Co. of America (NYSE:LH) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The medical research company reported $3.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.48 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $3.28 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.26 billion. Laboratory Co. of America had a net margin of 3.60% and a return on equity of 15.39%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 7.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $3.38 earnings per share. On average, research analysts anticipate that Laboratory Co. of America will post 14.56 EPS for the current year.

Laboratory Co. of America Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 13th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, November 26th will be given a dividend of $0.72 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, November 26th. This represents a $2.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.25%. Laboratory Co. of America’s dividend payout ratio is presently 57.95%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on LH shares. Piper Sandler initiated coverage on shares of Laboratory Co. of America in a report on Tuesday, October 1st. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $235.00 target price on the stock. Truist Financial boosted their price objective on shares of Laboratory Co. of America from $255.00 to $275.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their price objective on shares of Laboratory Co. of America from $220.00 to $230.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. UBS Group boosted their price objective on shares of Laboratory Co. of America from $260.00 to $270.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. Finally, Barclays dropped their price objective on shares of Laboratory Co. of America from $249.00 to $234.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $251.85.

Insider Buying and Selling at Laboratory Co. of America

In other Laboratory Co. of America news, Director Kerrii B. Anderson sold 586 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $225.00, for a total value of $131,850.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 14,722 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,312,450. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In other news, EVP Lance Berberian sold 12,093 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $229.10, for a total transaction of $2,770,506.30. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 15,921 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,647,501.10. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Kerrii B. Anderson sold 586 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $225.00, for a total value of $131,850.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 14,722 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,312,450. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 29,679 shares of company stock valued at $6,716,306 over the last 90 days. 0.85% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Laboratory Co. of America Company Profile

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.