Tidal Investments LLC Sells 2,949 Shares of Laboratory Co. of America Holdings (NYSE:LH)

Tidal Investments LLC reduced its stake in shares of Laboratory Co. of America Holdings (NYSE:LH) by 45.2% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 3,578 shares of the medical research company’s stock after selling 2,949 shares during the quarter. Tidal Investments LLC’s holdings in Laboratory Co. of America were worth $800,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of LH. Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its stake in shares of Laboratory Co. of America by 135.0% in the 2nd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 1,609,826 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $327,616,000 after purchasing an additional 924,881 shares during the last quarter. Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. raised its stake in Laboratory Co. of America by 25.4% during the second quarter. Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,949,640 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $396,771,000 after acquiring an additional 395,197 shares in the last quarter. Select Equity Group L.P. acquired a new stake in shares of Laboratory Co. of America in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $73,928,000. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC increased its position in Laboratory Co. of America by 16.4% during the 3rd quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 1,865,460 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $416,893,000 after purchasing an additional 263,105 shares in the last quarter. Finally, FMR LLC lifted its stake in Laboratory Co. of America by 17.0% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 1,586,397 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $354,528,000 after purchasing an additional 230,708 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 95.94% of the company’s stock.

Laboratory Co. of America Price Performance

Laboratory Co. of America stock opened at $228.61 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $19.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 44.22, a PEG ratio of 1.91 and a beta of 1.05. Laboratory Co. of America Holdings has a 52-week low of $191.97 and a 52-week high of $247.99. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66, a quick ratio of 1.30 and a current ratio of 1.44. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $232.13 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $221.38.

Laboratory Co. of America (NYSE:LH) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The medical research company reported $3.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.48 by $0.02. Laboratory Co. of America had a net margin of 3.43% and a return on equity of 15.27%. The business had revenue of $3.28 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.26 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $3.38 earnings per share. Laboratory Co. of America’s revenue was up 7.4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts predict that Laboratory Co. of America Holdings will post 14.52 earnings per share for the current year.

Laboratory Co. of America Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 13th. Investors of record on Tuesday, November 26th were paid a dividend of $0.72 per share. This represents a $2.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.26%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, November 26th. Laboratory Co. of America’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 55.71%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on LH shares. Hsbc Global Res raised Laboratory Co. of America from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on shares of Laboratory Co. of America from $260.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Evercore ISI dropped their price target on shares of Laboratory Co. of America from $250.00 to $240.00 and set an “in-line” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, September 24th. Barclays increased their price objective on Laboratory Co. of America from $234.00 to $249.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, October 25th. Finally, Bank of America lifted their target price on Laboratory Co. of America from $262.00 to $271.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, December 13th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Laboratory Co. of America presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $258.62.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Glenn A. Eisenberg sold 11,711 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, December 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $240.43, for a total value of $2,815,675.73. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 31,289 shares in the company, valued at $7,522,814.27. This trade represents a 27.23 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Der Vaart Sandra D. Van sold 1,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, November 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $239.42, for a total transaction of $239,420.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 2,670 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $639,251.40. This trade represents a 27.25 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 24,572 shares of company stock valued at $5,910,209. 0.85% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

About Laboratory Co. of America

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.