Labcorp (NYSE:LH) Raised to “Buy” at Wall Street Zen

Labcorp (NYSE:LH) was upgraded by equities researchers at Wall Street Zen from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a note issued to investors on Friday.

A number of other analysts have also recently weighed in on the stock. Truist Financial set a $320.00 price objective on shares of Labcorp in a report on Tuesday, October 14th. Mizuho increased their target price on shares of Labcorp from $285.00 to $320.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, October 17th. UBS Group reduced their price target on shares of Labcorp from $325.00 to $320.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, October 29th. Evercore ISI upped their price objective on shares of Labcorp from $300.00 to $305.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, October 3rd. Finally, Barclays lifted their target price on Labcorp from $275.00 to $290.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 2nd. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $299.77.

Labcorp Stock Down 1.2%

Shares of NYSE:LH traded down $3.25 on Friday, hitting $266.72. 445,454 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 671,694. Labcorp has a 1-year low of $209.38 and a 1-year high of $293.72. The company has a market capitalization of $22.11 billion, a PE ratio of 26.20, a P/E/G ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 1.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59, a quick ratio of 1.35 and a current ratio of 1.55. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $260.36 and its 200 day moving average is $266.20.

Labcorp (NYSE:LH) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, October 28th. The medical research company reported $4.18 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.13 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $3.56 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.56 billion. Labcorp had a return on equity of 15.85% and a net margin of 6.21%.The business’s quarterly revenue was up 8.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $3.50 EPS. Labcorp has set its FY 2025 guidance at 16.150-16.500 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that Labcorp will post 16.01 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Labcorp

In related news, CEO Adam H. Schechter sold 5,745 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $262.75, for a total value of $1,509,498.75. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 87,574 shares in the company, valued at $23,010,068.50. The trade was a 6.16% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Richelle P. Parham sold 7,009 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, October 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $254.28, for a total value of $1,782,248.52. Following the sale, the director directly owned 2,469 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $627,817.32. This represents a 73.95% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Company insiders own 0.84% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Labcorp

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Labcorp in the 2nd quarter valued at $263,070,000. Lazard Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Labcorp by 224.1% in the 2nd quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 989,433 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $259,734,000 after acquiring an additional 684,153 shares during the period. Victory Capital Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Labcorp by 20.0% in the 3rd quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 2,637,350 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $756,878,000 after acquiring an additional 440,224 shares during the period. Nordea Investment Management AB boosted its holdings in shares of Labcorp by 28.2% in the second quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 1,829,039 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $476,995,000 after acquiring an additional 401,808 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Pacer Advisors Inc. increased its stake in shares of Labcorp by 4,070.6% during the third quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 305,746 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $87,767,000 after acquiring an additional 298,415 shares during the period. 95.94% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Labcorp Company Profile

Laboratory Corporation of America Holdings, commonly known as Labcorp (NYSE: LH), is a global life sciences company that provides comprehensive clinical laboratory and drug development services. The company operates a broad network of laboratories, patient service centers and specialty testing sites to deliver diagnostic information and testing solutions that support patient care, clinical decision-making and population health initiatives.

Labcorp’s core businesses encompass clinical laboratory testing and pharmaceutical development services.