Donoghue Forlines LLC Invests $1.97 Million in Laboratory Co. of America Holdings (NYSE:LH)

Donoghue Forlines LLC acquired a new position in Laboratory Co. of America Holdings (NYSE:LH – Get Rating) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund acquired 6,284 shares of the medical research company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,974,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of LH. Consolidated Planning Corp acquired a new stake in shares of Laboratory Co. of America during the third quarter worth $26,000. Arrow Financial Corp raised its position in shares of Laboratory Co. of America by 100.0% during the fourth quarter. Arrow Financial Corp now owns 100 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares during the period. CarsonAllaria Wealth Management Ltd. acquired a new stake in shares of Laboratory Co. of America during the fourth quarter worth $31,000. Allworth Financial LP acquired a new stake in shares of Laboratory Co. of America during the fourth quarter worth $34,000. Finally, Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Laboratory Co. of America by 300.0% during the fourth quarter. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 160 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $50,000 after purchasing an additional 120 shares during the period. 92.02% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on LH shares. Zacks Investment Research downgraded Laboratory Co. of America from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $292.00 price target on the stock. in a report on Friday, February 4th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered their price target on Laboratory Co. of America from $294.00 to $265.00 in a report on Tuesday, May 3rd. Mizuho lowered their price target on Laboratory Co. of America from $354.00 to $323.00 in a report on Wednesday, May 4th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on Laboratory Co. of America from $290.00 to $235.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 25th. Finally, Citigroup lifted their price target on Laboratory Co. of America from $340.00 to $350.00 in a report on Friday, February 11th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Laboratory Co. of America currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $302.88.

In related news, Director Peter M. Neupert acquired 3,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 16th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $263.66 per share, for a total transaction of $922,810.00. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CMO Amy B. Summy sold 249 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $262.21, for a total value of $65,290.29. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 3,177 shares of company stock valued at $874,306. 0.31% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Shares of NYSE LH traded up $5.75 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $248.13. 18,337 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 882,727. Laboratory Co. of America Holdings has a 1-year low of $232.01 and a 1-year high of $317.17. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51, a current ratio of 1.98 and a quick ratio of 1.81. The stock has a market capitalization of $23.00 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.35 and a beta of 1.04. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $262.99 and its 200-day moving average price is $276.30.

Laboratory Co. of America (NYSE:LH – Get Rating) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 28th. The medical research company reported $6.11 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $5.88 by $0.23. Laboratory Co. of America had a return on equity of 23.84% and a net margin of 13.24%. The business had revenue of $3.90 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.01 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $8.79 EPS. The firm’s revenue was down 7.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts expect that Laboratory Co. of America Holdings will post 19.9 earnings per share for the current year.

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 9th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 19th will be paid a $0.72 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, May 18th. This represents a $2.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.16%.

Laboratory Co. of America Profile (Get Rating)

Laboratory Corporation of America Holdings operates as an independent clinical laboratory company worldwide. It operates in two segments, Labcorp Diagnostics (Dx) and Labcorp Drug Development (DD). It offers various tests, such as blood chemistry analyses, urinalyses, blood cell counts, thyroid tests, Pap tests, hemoglobin A1C and vitamin D products, prostate-specific antigens, tests for sexually transmitted diseases, hepatitis C tests, microbiology cultures and procedures, and alcohol and other substance-abuse tests.

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