Equitable Trust Co. Acquires 3,468 Shares of Laboratory Co. of America Holdings (NYSE:LH)

Equitable Trust Co. boosted its position in Laboratory Co. of America Holdings (NYSE:LH) by 4.1% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 87,787 shares of the medical research company’s stock after purchasing an additional 3,468 shares during the period. Laboratory Co. of America comprises 1.3% of Equitable Trust Co.’s portfolio, making the stock its 16th biggest holding. Equitable Trust Co.’s holdings in Laboratory Co. of America were worth $19,619,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Industrial Alliance Investment Management Inc. purchased a new position in Laboratory Co. of America in the second quarter worth about $27,000. Horizon Bancorp Inc. IN purchased a new position in shares of Laboratory Co. of America during the 3rd quarter valued at about $29,000. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC purchased a new position in shares of Laboratory Co. of America during the 1st quarter valued at about $30,000. Innealta Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of Laboratory Co. of America during the 2nd quarter valued at about $32,000. Finally, Family Firm Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Laboratory Co. of America during the 2nd quarter valued at about $37,000. 95.94% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Kerrii B. Anderson sold 1,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, October 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $230.00, for a total transaction of $230,000.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 13,722 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,156,060. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other news, Director Kerrii B. Anderson sold 1,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, October 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $230.00, for a total transaction of $230,000.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 13,722 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,156,060. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Der Vaart Sandra D. Van sold 2,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, August 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $227.05, for a total value of $454,100.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 3,670 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $833,273.50. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 18,000 shares of company stock valued at $4,043,950. 0.85% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Laboratory Co. of America Stock Performance

NYSE:LH opened at $242.39 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66, a current ratio of 1.44 and a quick ratio of 1.30. Laboratory Co. of America Holdings has a 1 year low of $191.97 and a 1 year high of $243.78. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $223.02 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $214.30. The company has a market cap of $20.27 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 46.88, a PEG ratio of 1.93 and a beta of 1.05.

Laboratory Co. of America (NYSE:LH) last released its earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The medical research company reported $3.50 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.48 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $3.28 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.26 billion. Laboratory Co. of America had a return on equity of 15.27% and a net margin of 3.43%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $3.38 EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Laboratory Co. of America Holdings will post 14.53 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Laboratory Co. of America Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 13th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, November 26th will be given a dividend of $0.72 per share. This represents a $2.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.19%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, November 26th. Laboratory Co. of America’s dividend payout ratio is currently 55.71%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on LH shares. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their price objective on Laboratory Co. of America from $220.00 to $230.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, August 2nd. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price objective on Laboratory Co. of America from $245.00 to $265.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, September 23rd. Bank of America lifted their price objective on Laboratory Co. of America from $240.00 to $260.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, August 5th. Truist Financial lifted their target price on Laboratory Co. of America from $255.00 to $275.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded Laboratory Co. of America from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $255.92.

About Laboratory Co. of America

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.