Wedge Capital Management L L P NC Buys 12,960 Shares of Laboratory Co. of America Holdings (NYSE:LH)

Wedge Capital Management L L P NC increased its stake in Laboratory Co. of America Holdings (NYSE:LH) by 10.4% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 138,060 shares of the medical research company’s stock after purchasing an additional 12,960 shares during the period. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC owned 0.17% of Laboratory Co. of America worth $32,132,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its position in Laboratory Co. of America by 2.0% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,003,998 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $458,334,000 after purchasing an additional 39,255 shares during the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its position in Laboratory Co. of America by 9.5% in the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 1,930,395 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $431,405,000 after purchasing an additional 167,137 shares during the last quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC raised its position in Laboratory Co. of America by 2.7% in the 4th quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 1,916,505 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $437,357,000 after purchasing an additional 51,045 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its position in Laboratory Co. of America by 2.4% in the 4th quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 1,822,964 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $418,042,000 after purchasing an additional 41,898 shares during the last quarter. Finally, FMR LLC raised its position in shares of Laboratory Co. of America by 2.2% during the 4th quarter. FMR LLC now owns 1,620,826 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $371,688,000 after acquiring an additional 34,429 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 95.94% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP Der Vaart Sandra D. Van sold 1,900 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $238.36, for a total transaction of $452,884.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 2,244 shares in the company, valued at $534,879.84. This represents a 45.85% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Amy B. Summy sold 758 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $231.67, for a total transaction of $175,605.86. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 5,302 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,228,314.34. This represents a 12.51% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 11,592 shares of company stock valued at $2,841,820. Company insiders own 0.84% of the company’s stock.

Laboratory Co. of America Price Performance

Shares of NYSE LH opened at $253.92 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $21.25 billion, a PE ratio of 28.79, a PEG ratio of 1.71 and a beta of 0.81. The company has a current ratio of 1.44, a quick ratio of 1.30 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67. Laboratory Co. of America Holdings has a 1-year low of $192.38 and a 1-year high of $258.59. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $237.30 and a 200 day moving average price of $238.82.

Laboratory Co. of America (NYSE:LH) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The medical research company reported $3.84 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.73 by $0.11. The firm had revenue of $3.35 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.41 billion. Laboratory Co. of America had a net margin of 5.73% and a return on equity of 15.29%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $3.68 EPS. Research analysts predict that Laboratory Co. of America Holdings will post 16.01 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Laboratory Co. of America Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, June 11th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 29th will be paid a $0.72 dividend. This represents a $2.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.13%. Laboratory Co. of America’s payout ratio is presently 33.29%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have commented on the stock. Truist Financial upped their target price on shares of Laboratory Co. of America from $274.00 to $290.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, May 12th. Piper Sandler reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $280.00 target price (up previously from $260.00) on shares of Laboratory Co. of America in a research report on Tuesday, May 6th. Citigroup upgraded shares of Laboratory Co. of America from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their target price for the company from $250.00 to $300.00 in a research report on Tuesday, March 4th. Redburn Atlantic assumed coverage on shares of Laboratory Co. of America in a research report on Wednesday, April 2nd. They set a “buy” rating and a $276.00 target price for the company. Finally, Barclays upped their target price on shares of Laboratory Co. of America from $240.00 to $250.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 30th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Laboratory Co. of America has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $272.92.

Laboratory Co. of America Company Profile

Labcorp Holdings, Inc engages in providing medical testing services. The company was founded on April 16, 2024 and is headquartered in Burlington, NC.