Marietta Wealth Management LLC Acquires 1,073 Shares of Laboratory Co. of America Holdings (NYSE:LH)

Marietta Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Laboratory Co. of America Holdings (NYSE:LH) by 5.5% during the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 20,613 shares of the medical research company’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,073 shares during the quarter. Marietta Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Laboratory Co. of America were worth $4,607,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its stake in shares of Laboratory Co. of America by 135.0% in the second quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 1,609,826 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $327,616,000 after acquiring an additional 924,881 shares during the period. Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Laboratory Co. of America by 25.4% in the 2nd quarter. Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,949,640 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $396,771,000 after purchasing an additional 395,197 shares during the period. Select Equity Group L.P. bought a new stake in shares of Laboratory Co. of America in the 2nd quarter valued at $73,928,000. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC raised its stake in Laboratory Co. of America by 16.4% during the third quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 1,865,460 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $416,893,000 after buying an additional 263,105 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Magnetar Financial LLC acquired a new position in Laboratory Co. of America in the first quarter valued at $45,567,000. 95.94% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Kerrii B. Anderson sold 586 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $225.00, for a total value of $131,850.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 14,722 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,312,450. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In related news, Director Kerrii B. Anderson sold 586 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $225.00, for a total transaction of $131,850.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 14,722 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,312,450. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Der Vaart Sandra D. Van sold 2,000 shares of Laboratory Co. of America stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $227.05, for a total transaction of $454,100.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 3,670 shares in the company, valued at approximately $833,273.50. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 29,679 shares of company stock valued at $6,716,306. Corporate insiders own 0.85% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have weighed in on LH. Barclays decreased their price target on Laboratory Co. of America from $249.00 to $234.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their target price on Laboratory Co. of America from $220.00 to $230.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, August 2nd. UBS Group increased their price target on Laboratory Co. of America from $260.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, August 2nd. Bank of America lifted their price objective on shares of Laboratory Co. of America from $240.00 to $260.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, August 5th. Finally, Truist Financial increased their target price on shares of Laboratory Co. of America from $255.00 to $275.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. Four 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.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $251.85.

Laboratory Co. of America Price Performance

LH stock opened at $220.51 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $18.59 billion, a P/E ratio of 44.37, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.67 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 $238.46. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $222.50 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $212.08. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39, a quick ratio of 0.77 and a current ratio of 0.88.

Laboratory Co. of America (NYSE:LH) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The medical research company reported $3.94 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.78 by $0.16. The business had revenue of $3.22 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.19 billion. Laboratory Co. of America had a return on equity of 15.39% and a net margin of 3.60%. Laboratory Co. of America’s quarterly revenue was up 6.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $3.42 EPS. Research analysts expect that Laboratory Co. of America Holdings will post 14.56 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Laboratory Co. of America Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 13th. Investors of record on Tuesday, November 26th will be issued a dividend of $0.72 per share. This represents a $2.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.31%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, November 26th. Laboratory Co. of America’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 57.95%.

Laboratory Co. of America Profile

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.