Truist Financial Lowers Laboratory Co. of America (NYSE:LH) Price Target to $255.00

Laboratory Co. of America (NYSE:LH) had its price objective decreased by equities researchers at Truist Financial from $270.00 to $255.00 in a note issued to investors on Friday, Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a “buy” rating on the medical research company’s stock. Truist Financial’s price target points to a potential upside of 28.58% from the company’s current price.

A number of other analysts have also recently weighed in on LH. Leerink Partnrs reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Laboratory Co. of America in a research report on Monday, February 26th. SVB Leerink initiated coverage on Laboratory Co. of America in a report on Monday, February 26th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $260.00 price objective on the stock. Robert W. Baird lowered their target price on Laboratory Co. of America from $255.00 to $244.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday. TheStreet lowered Laboratory Co. of America from a “b-” rating to a “c+” rating in a report on Thursday, February 15th. Finally, Evercore ISI initiated coverage on Laboratory Co. of America in a research note on Friday, February 9th. They issued an “in-line” rating and a $240.00 price objective on the stock. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Laboratory Co. of America has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $242.44.

Laboratory Co. of America Price Performance

Shares of LH stock traded down $0.03 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $198.32. 329,924 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 750,595. The company has a market capitalization of $16.68 billion, a PE ratio of 42.55, a PEG ratio of 1.56 and a beta of 1.01. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $212.06 and its 200-day simple moving average is $214.69. Laboratory Co. of America has a 12-month low of $174.20 and a 12-month high of $234.09. The company has a current ratio of 1.17, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52.

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 analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.46 by $0.22. Laboratory Co. of America had a return on equity of 13.99% and a net margin of 3.24%. The business had revenue of $3.18 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.12 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $3.82 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 4.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Laboratory Co. of America will post 14.84 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Laboratory Co. of America

In other Laboratory Co. of America news, CMO Amy B. Summy sold 227 shares of Laboratory Co. of America 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 directly owns 3,859 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $842,998.55. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. In other Laboratory Co. of America news, CFO Glenn A. Eisenberg sold 34,504 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $215.97, for a total transaction of $7,451,828.88. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now 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 through this link. Also, 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 approximately $842,998.55. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 54,305 shares of company stock worth $11,761,059 over the last three months. Insiders own 0.85% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Laboratory Co. of America

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Laboratory Co. of America by 8.9% in the first quarter. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC now owns 1,878 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $410,000 after acquiring an additional 154 shares during the period. Lindbrook Capital LLC lifted its holdings in Laboratory Co. of America by 57.1% during the first quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC now owns 1,486 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $325,000 after purchasing an additional 540 shares in the last quarter. Carmel Capital Partners LLC increased its position in shares of Laboratory Co. of America by 1.4% during the first quarter. Carmel Capital Partners LLC now owns 5,152 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $1,126,000 after acquiring an additional 70 shares during the last quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank raised its position in Laboratory Co. of America by 177.2% in the 1st quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 80,153 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $17,510,000 after purchasing an additional 51,237 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Valeo Financial Advisors LLC raised its position in Laboratory Co. of America by 9.1% in the 1st quarter. Valeo Financial Advisors LLC now owns 7,808 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $1,624,000 after purchasing an additional 651 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 95.94% of the company’s stock.

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).