Laboratory Co. of America Holdings (NYSE:LH) Position Raised by Commerce Bank

Commerce Bank boosted its position in Laboratory Co. of America Holdings (NYSE:LH) by 6.5% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 31,833 shares of the medical research company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,952 shares during the period. Commerce Bank’s holdings in Laboratory Co. of America were worth $7,235,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Laboratory Co. of America in the 4th quarter worth approximately $291,045,000. Morgan Stanley grew its position in Laboratory Co. of America by 102.6% in the third quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 2,219,291 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $446,189,000 after buying an additional 1,123,755 shares during the last quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Laboratory Co. of America by 28.0% in the third quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 2,212,497 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $444,821,000 after buying an additional 483,878 shares in the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. lifted its position in shares of Laboratory Co. of America by 536.0% during the 3rd quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 540,429 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $108,653,000 after acquiring an additional 455,462 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its stake in shares of Laboratory Co. of America by 20.6% during the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 2,487,106 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $500,033,000 after acquiring an additional 424,684 shares in the last quarter. 95.94% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Evercore ISI began coverage on Laboratory Co. of America in a research report on Friday, February 9th. They set an “in-line” rating and a $240.00 target price on the stock. Barclays reduced their price objective on shares of Laboratory Co. of America from $234.00 to $213.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, April 26th. Argus upgraded shares of Laboratory Co. of America from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $250.00 target price for the company in a report on Monday, March 25th. TheStreet lowered shares of Laboratory Co. of America from a “b-” rating to a “c+” rating in a report on Thursday, February 15th. Finally, SVB Leerink initiated coverage on shares of Laboratory Co. of America in a research report on Monday, February 26th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $260.00 price target for the company. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $243.14.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Der Vaart Sandra D. Van sold 2,000 shares of Laboratory Co. of America stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $210.83, for a total value of $421,660.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 5,637 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,188,448.71. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In related news, EVP Der Vaart Sandra D. Van sold 2,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $210.83, for a total value of $421,660.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 5,637 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,188,448.71. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Kerrii B. Anderson sold 250 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $200.10, for a total value of $50,025.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 15,722 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,145,972.20. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 23,744 shares of company stock valued at $5,111,382 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.85% of the company’s stock.

Laboratory Co. of America Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:LH opened at $199.65 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $16.83 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.17, a P/E/G ratio of 1.50 and a beta of 1.02. Laboratory Co. of America Holdings has a 1 year low of $174.20 and a 1 year high of $234.09. The company has a current ratio of 0.88, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $207.09 and a 200 day simple moving average of $215.15.

Laboratory Co. of America (NYSE:LH) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The medical research company reported $3.68 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.48 by $0.20. The company had revenue of $3.18 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.12 billion. Laboratory Co. of America had a return on equity of 14.68% and a net margin of 3.52%. The business’s revenue was up 4.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $3.82 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Laboratory Co. of America Holdings will post 14.87 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Laboratory Co. of America Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, June 12th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, May 28th will be given a $0.72 dividend. This represents a $2.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.44%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 24th. Laboratory Co. of America’s dividend payout ratio is 57.95%.

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).