Laboratory Co. of America (NYSE:LH) Price Target Increased to $270.00 by Analysts at UBS Group

Laboratory Co. of America (NYSE:LH) had its target price increased by UBS Group from $260.00 to $270.00 in a report published on Friday morning, Benzinga reports. UBS Group currently has a buy rating on the medical research company’s stock.

A number of other research firms have also recently issued reports on LH. Evercore ISI increased their price objective on shares of Laboratory Co. of America from $210.00 to $215.00 and gave the stock an in-line rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on Laboratory Co. of America from $261.00 to $243.00 and set an overweight rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, May 30th. Robert W. Baird upped their target price on Laboratory Co. of America from $261.00 to $277.00 and gave the stock an outperform rating in a research report on Friday. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their price target on shares of Laboratory Co. of America from $220.00 to $230.00 and gave the company a hold rating in a research report on Friday. Finally, Truist Financial upped their price objective on shares of Laboratory Co. of America from $255.00 to $275.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a report on Friday. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Laboratory Co. of America currently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and an average price target of $247.79.

Laboratory Co. of America Trading Up 1.1 %

LH traded up $2.61 during trading on Friday, reaching $236.00. 1,194,681 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 600,207. The stock has a market capitalization of $19.89 billion, a PE ratio of 47.49, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.76 and a beta of 1.05. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $205.23 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $210.54. The company has a current ratio of 0.88, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39. Laboratory Co. of America has a one year low of $191.97 and a one year high of $238.46.

Laboratory Co. of America (NYSE:LH) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 1st. The medical research company reported $3.94 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.78 by $0.16. Laboratory Co. of America had a return on equity of 15.39% and a net margin of 3.60%. The company had revenue of $3.22 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.19 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $3.42 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 6.2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Laboratory Co. of America will post 14.84 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Laboratory Co. of America Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 13th. Investors of record on Thursday, August 29th will be given a dividend of $0.72 per share. This represents a $2.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.22%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 29th. Laboratory Co. of America’s payout ratio is 57.95%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Der Vaart Sandra D. Van sold 2,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $210.83, for a total value of $421,660.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 5,637 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,188,448.71. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Insiders own 0.85% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC bought a new stake in Laboratory Co. of America during the 1st quarter valued at $30,000. Industrial Alliance Investment Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Laboratory Co. of America during the 2nd quarter valued at $27,000. Innealta Capital LLC purchased a new stake in Laboratory Co. of America during the 2nd quarter worth about $32,000. Family Firm Inc. purchased a new stake in Laboratory Co. of America during the 2nd quarter worth about $37,000. Finally, McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. boosted 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 purchasing an additional 166 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 95.94% of the company’s stock.

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).