Duality Advisers LP Acquires New Shares in Laboratory Co. of America Holdings (NYSE:LH)

Duality Advisers LP bought a new position in Laboratory Co. of America Holdings (NYSE:LH) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm bought 12,257 shares of the medical research company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,786,000.

Several other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of LH. Morgan Stanley raised its holdings in Laboratory Co. of America by 102.6% in the 3rd quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 2,219,291 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $446,189,000 after acquiring an additional 1,123,755 shares during the period. Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Laboratory Co. of America by 644.2% during the third quarter. Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,280,884 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $257,522,000 after buying an additional 1,108,776 shares during the last quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC raised its position in shares of Laboratory Co. of America by 3,836.8% during the third quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 806,975 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $162,243,000 after buying an additional 786,477 shares during the last quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC raised its position in shares of Laboratory Co. of America by 28.0% during the third quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 2,212,497 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $444,821,000 after buying an additional 483,878 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Ameriprise Financial Inc. raised its position in shares of Laboratory Co. of America by 536.0% during the third quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 540,429 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $108,653,000 after buying an additional 455,462 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 95.94% of the company’s stock.

Laboratory Co. of America Price Performance

Shares of LH traded up $0.03 during mid-day trading on Monday, hitting $201.51. 86,250 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 728,554. Laboratory Co. of America Holdings has a one year low of $174.20 and a one year high of $234.09. The stock has a market capitalization of $16.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 43.14, a PEG ratio of 1.51 and a beta of 1.01. The company has a current ratio of 1.17, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52. The business has a 50-day moving average of $213.74 and a 200 day moving average of $214.79.

Laboratory Co. of America (NYSE:LH) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 15th. The medical research company reported $3.30 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating 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 firm had revenue of $3.03 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.02 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $4.14 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 17.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts expect that Laboratory Co. of America Holdings will post 14.84 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Laboratory Co. of America Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced 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. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 24th. This represents a $2.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.43%. Laboratory Co. of America’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 61.67%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Laboratory Co. of America news, CMO Amy B. Summy sold 3,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, April 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $217.29, for a total value of $760,515.00. Following the sale, the chief marketing officer now directly owns 3,975 shares in the company, valued at $863,727.75. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In related news, CFO Glenn A. Eisenberg sold 34,504 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $215.97, for a total transaction of $7,451,828.88. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 23,595 shares in the company, valued at $5,095,812.15. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CMO Amy B. Summy sold 3,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, April 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $217.29, for a total transaction of $760,515.00. Following the sale, the chief marketing officer now owns 3,975 shares in the company, valued at $863,727.75. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 54,305 shares of company stock worth $11,761,059. Company insiders own 0.85% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. 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 price target for the company. Barclays assumed coverage on shares of Laboratory Co. of America in a research report on Wednesday, January 3rd. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $222.00 price target for the company. SVB Leerink assumed coverage on shares of Laboratory Co. of America in a research report on Monday, February 26th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $260.00 price target for the company. Leerink Partnrs reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of Laboratory Co. of America in a research report on Monday, February 26th. Finally, 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 report on Monday, March 25th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $243.50.

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).