336 Shares in Laboratory Co. of America Holdings (NYSE:LH) Bought by Planned Solutions Inc.

Planned Solutions Inc. bought a new stake in Laboratory Co. of America Holdings (NYSE:LH) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor bought 336 shares of the medical research company’s stock, valued at approximately $76,000.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Lazard Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in Laboratory Co. of America by 532.2% in the fourth quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 1,530,675 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $360,441,000 after purchasing an additional 1,288,574 shares during the last quarter. Morgan Stanley lifted its stake in shares of 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 valued at $446,189,000 after acquiring an additional 1,123,755 shares during the last quarter. Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Laboratory Co. of America by 644.2% during the 3rd 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 acquiring an additional 1,108,776 shares during the period. Norges Bank bought a new position in Laboratory Co. of America during the 4th quarter worth approximately $219,236,000. Finally, Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC lifted its position in Laboratory Co. of America by 3,836.8% in 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 purchasing an additional 786,477 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 95.94% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Laboratory Co. of America

In related news, CMO Amy B. Summy sold 227 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 in the company, valued at approximately $842,998.55. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In other news, EVP Jonathan P. Divincenzo sold 500 shares of Laboratory Co. of America stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $215.49, for a total value of $107,745.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 3,401 shares in the company, valued at $732,881.49. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CMO Amy B. Summy sold 227 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $218.45, for a total transaction of $49,588.15. Following the completion of the sale, the chief marketing officer now owns 3,859 shares in the company, valued at approximately $842,998.55. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 40,775 shares of company stock valued at $8,823,080. 0.65% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Laboratory Co. of America Trading Up 1.4 %

NYSE:LH opened at $216.57 on Thursday. Laboratory Co. of America Holdings has a one year low of $174.20 and a one year high of $234.09. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $219.22 and its 200 day simple moving average is $214.06. The firm has a market capitalization of $18.21 billion, a P/E ratio of 46.37, a PEG ratio of 1.61 and a beta of 1.02. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52, a current ratio of 1.17 and a quick ratio of 1.02.

Laboratory Co. of America (NYSE:LH) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 15th. The medical research company reported $3.30 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.29 by $0.01. Laboratory Co. of America had a return on equity of 13.99% and a net margin of 3.24%. The company had revenue of $3.03 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.02 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $4.14 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 17.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts forecast that Laboratory Co. of America Holdings will post 14.77 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Laboratory Co. of America Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 13th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 27th were paid a $0.72 dividend. This represents a $2.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.33%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 26th. Laboratory Co. of America’s payout ratio is 61.67%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts recently commented on LH shares. Evercore ISI assumed coverage on shares of Laboratory Co. of America in a research note on Friday, February 9th. They issued an “in-line” rating and a $240.00 target price on the stock. Barclays began coverage on shares of Laboratory Co. of America in a research note on Wednesday, January 3rd. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $222.00 price objective for the company. TheStreet cut Laboratory Co. of America from a “b-” rating to a “c+” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 15th. SVB Leerink began coverage on Laboratory Co. of America in a report on Monday, February 26th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $260.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Argus raised Laboratory Co. of America from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $250.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Monday. Four investment 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 company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $243.50.

Laboratory Co. of America Company Profile

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).