Hunter Perkins Capital Management LLC Cuts Holdings in Laboratory Co. of America Holdings (NYSE:LH)

Hunter Perkins Capital Management LLC decreased its holdings in shares of Laboratory Co. of America Holdings (NYSE:LH) by 0.9% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 117,775 shares of the medical research company’s stock after selling 1,110 shares during the period. Laboratory Co. of America makes up about 5.3% of Hunter Perkins Capital Management LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its largest position. Hunter Perkins Capital Management LLC owned approximately 0.14% of Laboratory Co. of America worth $26,320,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Industrial Alliance Investment Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Laboratory Co. of America during the 2nd quarter valued at $27,000. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC bought a new stake in Laboratory Co. of America during the first quarter worth about $30,000. Innealta Capital LLC bought a new position in shares of Laboratory Co. of America during the 2nd quarter valued at about $32,000. Family Firm Inc. bought a new stake in Laboratory Co. of America in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $37,000. Finally, McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. boosted its stake in Laboratory Co. of America by 313.2% in the first quarter. McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 219 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $48,000 after buying an additional 166 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 95.94% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

LH has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Bank of America increased their price objective on Laboratory Co. of America from $240.00 to $260.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, August 5th. Piper Sandler assumed coverage on shares of Laboratory Co. of America in a research note on Tuesday, October 1st. They set a “neutral” rating and a $235.00 target price on the stock. UBS Group lifted their price target on Laboratory Co. of America from $260.00 to $270.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, August 2nd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their price target on shares of Laboratory Co. of America from $220.00 to $230.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. Finally, Robert W. Baird lifted their price objective on Laboratory Co. of America from $278.00 to $282.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, September 20th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Laboratory Co. of America currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $253.00.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CFO Glenn A. Eisenberg sold 15,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $223.99, for a total value of $3,359,850.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 31,289 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,008,423.11. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In related news, EVP Lance Berberian sold 12,093 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $229.10, for a total value of $2,770,506.30. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 15,921 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,647,501.10. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Glenn A. Eisenberg sold 15,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $223.99, for a total value of $3,359,850.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 31,289 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,008,423.11. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 29,679 shares of company stock worth $6,716,306. 0.85% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Laboratory Co. of America Stock Performance

NYSE LH traded down $0.99 on Wednesday, hitting $215.69. 59,512 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 660,400. The firm has a market capitalization of $18.18 billion, a PE ratio of 43.60, a P/E/G ratio of 1.67 and a beta of 1.05. Laboratory Co. of America Holdings has a 1-year low of $191.97 and a 1-year high of $238.46. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $223.22 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $211.94. The company has a current ratio of 0.88, a quick ratio of 0.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39.

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, beating 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 business had revenue of $3.22 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.19 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $3.42 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 6.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts expect that Laboratory Co. of America Holdings will post 14.56 EPS for the current year.

Laboratory Co. of America Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 13th. Investors of record on Tuesday, November 26th will be issued a $0.72 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, November 26th. This represents a $2.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.34%. Laboratory Co. of America’s dividend payout ratio is presently 57.95%.

About Laboratory Co. of America

Labcorp Holdings Inc provides laboratory services. It operates through two segments, Diagnostics Laboratories and Biopharma Laboratory Services. The company offers various tests, such as blood chemistry analyses, urinalyses, blood cell counts, thyroid, PAP, hemoglobin A1C and vitamin D, prostate-specific antigens, sexually transmitted diseases, hepatitis C, microbiology cultures and procedures, and alcohol and other substance-abuse tests.