Laboratory Co. of America Holdings (NYSE:LH) Shares Sold by Wealth Advisors of Tampa Bay LLC

Wealth Advisors of Tampa Bay LLC trimmed its position in shares of Laboratory Co. of America Holdings (NYSE:LH) by 48.3% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 8,133 shares of the medical research company’s stock after selling 7,583 shares during the period. Wealth Advisors of Tampa Bay LLC’s holdings in Laboratory Co. of America were worth $1,849,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Provence Wealth Management Group acquired a new position in shares of Laboratory Co. of America in the third quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Mendota Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Laboratory Co. of America in the fourth quarter worth $29,000. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Laboratory Co. of America during the second quarter worth $29,000. Tradewinds Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Laboratory Co. of America in the third quarter valued at $34,000. Finally, Exchange Traded Concepts LLC purchased a new position in Laboratory Co. of America in the third quarter valued at $37,000. 95.94% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

LH has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Leerink Partnrs restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Laboratory Co. of America in a research note on Monday, February 26th. Argus upgraded shares of Laboratory Co. of America from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $250.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Monday, March 25th. SVB Leerink initiated coverage on shares of Laboratory Co. of America in a research note on Monday, February 26th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $260.00 target price for the company. Barclays started coverage on Laboratory Co. of America in a research note on Wednesday, January 3rd. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $222.00 price target on the stock. Finally, 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 target price on the stock. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Laboratory Co. of America currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $243.50.

Laboratory Co. of America Price Performance

Shares of NYSE LH traded up $0.05 during trading on Friday, hitting $211.26. 612,612 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 693,367. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52, a current ratio of 1.17 and a quick ratio 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 market cap of $17.77 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 45.24, a PEG ratio of 1.59 and a beta of 1.01. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $217.47 and its 200 day moving average price is $214.58.

Laboratory Co. of America (NYSE:LH) last released its quarterly earnings data 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. The firm had revenue of $3.03 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.02 billion. Laboratory Co. of America had a net margin of 3.24% and a return on equity of 13.99%. The firm’s revenue was down 17.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $4.14 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Laboratory Co. of America Holdings will post 14.83 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Laboratory Co. of America Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 13th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 27th were given a $0.72 dividend. This represents a $2.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.36%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 26th. Laboratory Co. of America’s dividend payout ratio is currently 61.67%.

Insider Transactions at Laboratory Co. of America

In other Laboratory Co. of America news, COO Mark S. Schroeder sold 6,477 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $217.29, for a total value of $1,407,387.33. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 5,036 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,094,272.44. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other Laboratory Co. of America news, COO Mark S. Schroeder sold 6,477 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, April 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $217.29, for a total transaction of $1,407,387.33. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 5,036 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,094,272.44. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CMO Amy B. Summy sold 227 shares of Laboratory Co. of America stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $218.45, for a total value of $49,588.15. Following the sale, the chief marketing officer now owns 3,859 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $842,998.55. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 54,305 shares of company stock valued at $11,761,059 in the last 90 days. 0.65% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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).