Marietta Wealth Management LLC Acquires 81 Shares of Laboratory Co. of America Holdings (NYSE:LH)

Marietta Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in Laboratory Co. of America Holdings (NYSE:LH) by 0.6% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 12,832 shares of the medical research company’s stock after buying an additional 81 shares during the quarter. Marietta Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Laboratory Co. of America were worth $2,917,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Provence Wealth Management Group bought a new stake in Laboratory Co. of America in the third quarter valued at $29,000. Mendota Financial Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of Laboratory Co. of America during the 4th quarter valued at about $29,000. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Laboratory Co. of America during the second quarter valued at about $29,000. Tradewinds Capital Management LLC bought a new position in Laboratory Co. of America in the third quarter worth about $34,000. Finally, Exchange Traded Concepts LLC bought a new stake in Laboratory Co. of America during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $37,000. 95.94% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, COO Mark S. Schroeder sold 6,477 shares of Laboratory Co. of America stock in a transaction on Monday, April 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $217.29, for a total transaction of $1,407,387.33. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 5,036 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,094,272.44. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In other news, CFO Glenn A. Eisenberg sold 34,504 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $215.97, for a total value of $7,451,828.88. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 23,595 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,095,812.15. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, COO Mark S. Schroeder sold 6,477 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, April 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $217.29, for a total transaction of $1,407,387.33. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 5,036 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,094,272.44. 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. 0.85% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on LH shares. Evercore ISI initiated coverage on Laboratory Co. of America in a research report on Friday, February 9th. They set an “in-line” rating and a $240.00 price target on the stock. Argus raised shares of 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 report on Monday, March 25th. Barclays assumed coverage on shares of Laboratory Co. of America in a research report on Wednesday, January 3rd. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $222.00 price target for the company. Leerink Partnrs restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Laboratory Co. of America in a report on Monday, February 26th. Finally, TheStreet lowered shares of Laboratory Co. of America from a “b-” rating to a “c+” rating in a report on Thursday, February 15th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $243.50.

Laboratory Co. of America Stock Performance

Shares of LH stock traded up $1.07 during trading hours on Tuesday, reaching $204.39. The company had a trading volume of 235,719 shares, compared to its average volume of 730,571. Laboratory Co. of America Holdings has a one year low of $174.20 and a one year high of $234.09. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a current ratio of 1.17. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $215.51 and a 200-day moving average price of $214.79. The firm has a market cap of $17.20 billion, a PE ratio of 43.55, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.55 and a beta of 1.01.

Laboratory Co. of America (NYSE:LH) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 15th. The medical research company reported $3.30 EPS for the quarter, topping 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 for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.02 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $4.14 EPS. Laboratory Co. of America’s revenue for the quarter was down 17.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts predict that Laboratory Co. of America Holdings will post 14.84 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Laboratory Co. of America Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, June 12th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, May 28th will be issued a dividend of $0.72 per share. This represents a $2.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.41%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 24th. Laboratory Co. of America’s dividend payout ratio is currently 61.67%.

Laboratory Co. of America 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).