Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC Purchases 1,742 Shares of Laboratory Co. of America Holdings (NYSE:LH)

Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC raised its holdings in shares of Laboratory Co. of America Holdings (NYSE:LH) by 132.6% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 3,056 shares of the medical research company’s stock after buying an additional 1,742 shares during the period. Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC’s holdings in Laboratory Co. of America were worth $701,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of LH. SouthState Corp bought a new stake in shares of Laboratory Co. of America during the third quarter worth about $28,000. Horizon Bancorp Inc. IN acquired a new position in Laboratory Co. of America during the 3rd quarter valued at about $29,000. Fortitude Family Office LLC increased its holdings in Laboratory Co. of America by 312.5% during the 4th quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 132 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. Riverview Trust Co raised its stake in shares of Laboratory Co. of America by 172.6% in the third quarter. Riverview Trust Co now owns 169 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $38,000 after purchasing an additional 107 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Concord Wealth Partners lifted its holdings in shares of Laboratory Co. of America by 43.3% in the third quarter. Concord Wealth Partners now owns 172 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $38,000 after purchasing an additional 52 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 95.94% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on the company. Piper Sandler increased their price target on Laboratory Co. of America from $240.00 to $260.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on shares of Laboratory Co. of America from $260.00 to $270.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 17th. Bank of America boosted their price target on shares of Laboratory Co. of America from $262.00 to $271.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, December 13th. HSBC upgraded shares of Laboratory Co. of America from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group boosted their target price on Laboratory Co. of America from $275.00 to $290.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Laboratory Co. of America presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $265.31.

Laboratory Co. of America Price Performance

NYSE LH opened at $246.74 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.30, a current ratio of 1.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67. The company has a market cap of $20.64 billion, a PE ratio of 27.98, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.84 and a beta of 1.07. Laboratory Co. of America Holdings has a 52 week low of $191.97 and a 52 week high of $258.59. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $237.13 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $230.66.

Laboratory Co. of America (NYSE:LH) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The medical research company reported $3.45 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.40 by $0.05. Laboratory Co. of America had a net margin of 5.73% and a return on equity of 15.29%. Research analysts predict that Laboratory Co. of America Holdings will post 15.96 earnings per share for the current year.

Laboratory Co. of America Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 12th. Investors of record on Thursday, February 27th will be paid a dividend of $0.72 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, February 27th. This represents a $2.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.17%. Laboratory Co. of America’s payout ratio is 32.65%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Laboratory Co. of America news, Director Kerrii B. Anderson sold 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $235.00, for a total value of $235,000.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 12,722 shares in the company, valued at $2,989,670. This represents a 7.29 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CMO Amy B. Summy sold 3,672 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, November 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $238.91, for a total transaction of $877,277.52. Following the transaction, the chief marketing officer now owns 4,318 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,031,613.38. This trade represents a 45.96 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 24,504 shares of company stock worth $5,905,692 in the last quarter. 0.85% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

About Laboratory Co. of America

Labcorp Holdings, Inc engages in providing medical testing services. The company was founded on April 16, 2024 and is headquartered in Burlington, NC.