Raymond James Financial Inc. Takes Position in Laboratory Co. of America Holdings (NYSE:LH)

Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Laboratory Co. of America Holdings (NYSE:LH) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 147,302 shares of the medical research company’s stock, valued at approximately $33,779,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. owned 0.18% of Laboratory Co. of America at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of LH. Graney & King LLC bought a new stake in shares of Laboratory Co. of America in the fourth quarter worth about $26,000. Fortitude Family Office LLC lifted its holdings in Laboratory Co. of America by 312.5% in the 4th quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 132 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 100 shares during the period. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. grew its position in shares of Laboratory Co. of America by 309.8% in the 4th quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 168 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $39,000 after buying an additional 127 shares during the last quarter. Human Investing LLC purchased a new position in shares of Laboratory Co. of America during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $39,000. Finally, Heck Capital Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Laboratory Co. of America during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $44,000. 95.94% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have recently commented on the stock. UBS Group dropped their target price on shares of Laboratory Co. of America from $293.00 to $286.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Piper Sandler upped their price objective on shares of Laboratory Co. of America from $240.00 to $260.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, February 10th. Citigroup upgraded shares of Laboratory Co. of America from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $250.00 to $300.00 in a report on Tuesday, March 4th. Truist Financial cut their price target on Laboratory Co. of America from $285.00 to $274.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, April 11th. Finally, StockNews.com raised Laboratory Co. of America from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Sunday, April 6th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $268.77.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Adam H. Schechter sold 6,121 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $244.62, for a total transaction of $1,497,319.02. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 86,445 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $21,146,175.90. This represents a 6.61 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CMO Amy B. Summy sold 226 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $250.40, for a total value of $56,590.40. Following the completion of the sale, the chief marketing officer now owns 4,544 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,137,817.60. This trade represents a 4.74 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 14,258 shares of company stock worth $3,518,177. Insiders own 0.85% of the company’s stock.

Laboratory Co. of America Stock Down 2.4 %

LH stock opened at $220.59 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $18.46 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.01, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.71 and a beta of 0.99. Laboratory Co. of America Holdings has a 12 month low of $191.97 and a 12 month high of $258.59. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $238.66 and its 200-day simple moving average is $234.79. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67, a current ratio of 1.44 and a quick ratio of 1.30.

Laboratory Co. of America (NYSE:LH) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The medical research company reported $3.45 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.40 by $0.05. Laboratory Co. of America had a return on equity of 15.29% and a net margin of 5.73%. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Laboratory Co. of America Holdings will post 16.01 earnings per share for the current year.

Laboratory Co. of America Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, June 11th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 29th will be paid a $0.72 dividend. This represents a $2.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.31%. Laboratory Co. of America’s dividend payout ratio is presently 32.65%.

Laboratory Co. of America Profile

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