Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund Reduces Position in Laboratory Co. of America Holdings (NYSE:LH)

Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund reduced its position in Laboratory Co. of America Holdings (NYSE:LH) by 7.4% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 2,802 shares of the medical research company’s stock after selling 223 shares during the quarter. Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund’s holdings in Laboratory Co. of America were worth $612,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in LH. Mendota Financial Group LLC bought a new position in shares of Laboratory Co. of America in the fourth quarter worth about $29,000. McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. grew its stake in Laboratory Co. of America by 313.2% in the 1st quarter. McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 219 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $48,000 after acquiring an additional 166 shares in the last quarter. Concord Wealth Partners raised its stake in shares of Laboratory Co. of America by 50.3% during the first quarter. Concord Wealth Partners now owns 275 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $60,000 after acquiring an additional 92 shares in the last quarter. Disciplined Equity Management Inc. bought a new position in Laboratory Co. of America in the fourth quarter worth approximately $68,000. Finally, Oakworth Capital Inc. increased its holdings in Laboratory Co. of America by 48.1% during the 4th quarter. Oakworth Capital Inc. now owns 308 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $70,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 95.94% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Laboratory Co. of America

In related news, CAO Peter J. Wilkinson sold 2,439 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, April 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $204.33, for a total value of $498,360.87. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 2,087 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $426,436.71. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In related news, CAO Peter J. Wilkinson sold 2,439 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $204.33, for a total value of $498,360.87. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 2,087 shares in the company, valued at $426,436.71. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, Director Kerrii B. Anderson sold 250 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $204.13, for a total transaction of $51,032.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 15,972 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,260,364.36. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 4,939 shares of company stock worth $1,021,078. Company insiders own 0.85% of the company’s stock.

Laboratory Co. of America Stock Up 0.6 %

NYSE:LH traded up $1.18 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $210.90. 395,638 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 495,470. The company has a fifty day moving average of $203.26 and a 200 day moving average of $210.41. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a current ratio of 0.88. Laboratory Co. of America Holdings has a twelve month low of $191.97 and a twelve month high of $234.09. The company has a market capitalization of $17.78 billion, a P/E ratio of 42.43, a P/E/G ratio of 1.59 and a beta of 1.05.

Laboratory Co. of America (NYSE:LH) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 25th. The medical research company reported $3.68 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.48 by $0.20. The firm had revenue of $3.18 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.12 billion. Laboratory Co. of America had a net margin of 3.52% and a return on equity of 14.68%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $3.82 earnings per share. On average, analysts forecast that Laboratory Co. of America Holdings will post 14.84 EPS for the current year.

Laboratory Co. of America Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 13th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, August 29th will be issued a $0.72 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 29th. This represents a $2.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.37%. Laboratory Co. of America’s dividend payout ratio is currently 57.95%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on LH. Barclays dropped their price target on Laboratory Co. of America from $234.00 to $213.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, April 26th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on shares of Laboratory Co. of America from $261.00 to $243.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, May 30th. StockNews.com cut shares of Laboratory Co. of America from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 4th. Truist Financial cut their price objective on shares of Laboratory Co. of America from $270.00 to $255.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, April 26th. Finally, Robert W. Baird upped their target price on Laboratory Co. of America from $258.00 to $261.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, July 8th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $241.29.

About Laboratory Co. of America

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).