Truist Financial Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Labcorp (NYSE:LH) Stock

Key Points

• Truist Financial raised Labcorp’s price target from $365 to $395 while maintaining a “buy” rating, implying approximately 9% upside from the stock’s reported $362.29 price.
• Labcorp exceeded quarterly expectations, reporting $4.78 adjusted EPS versus the $4.64 consensus and $3.81 billion in revenue, up 6.9% year over year.
• Analyst sentiment remains favorable, with a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and a $361.58 average price target; however, recent insider activity consisted entirely of stock sales.

Labcorp (NYSE:LH - Get Free Report) had its price target upped by equities research analysts at Truist Financial from $365.00 to $395.00 in a research note issued to investors on Thursday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has a "buy" rating on the medical research company's stock. Truist Financial's price target indicates a potential upside of 9.03% from the company's current price.

LH has been the subject of several other research reports. Wall Street Zen raised Labcorp from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Sunday, July 12th. UBS Group reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $420.00 price target on shares of Labcorp in a research report on Thursday. Mizuho set a $355.00 target price on Labcorp in a research report on Monday, August 10th. Morgan Stanley reissued an "overweight" rating and set a $388.00 target price on shares of Labcorp in a report on Thursday. Finally, Robert W. Baird raised their price target on shares of Labcorp from $361.00 to $396.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have issued a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $361.58.

Labcorp Trading Up 0.6%

NYSE LH traded up $2.04 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $362.29. The company's stock had a trading volume of 233,562 shares, compared to its average volume of 693,676. The firm has a market capitalization of $29.38 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.96, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.88 and a beta of 0.87. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a current ratio of 1.80 and a quick ratio of 1.53. Labcorp has a 52-week low of $244.52 and a 52-week high of $371.00. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $321.91 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $286.47.

Labcorp (NYSE:LH - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 28th. The medical research company reported $4.78 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.64 by $0.14. Labcorp had a net margin of 6.99% and a return on equity of 16.74%. The company had revenue of $3.81 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.76 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $4.18 earnings per share. Labcorp's revenue for the quarter was up 6.9% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts expect that Labcorp will post 18.32 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at Labcorp

In other Labcorp news, Director Kerrii B. Anderson sold 3,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $318.02, for a total value of $954,060.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 6,563 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,087,165.26. This represents a 31.37% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, EVP Amy B. Summy sold 924 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $306.74, for a total transaction of $283,427.76. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 6,956 shares in the company, valued at $2,133,683.44. The trade was a 11.73% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold a total of 8,593 shares of company stock worth $2,733,295 in the last ninety days. 0.84% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Labcorp

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC increased its position in Labcorp by 1.0% in the 1st quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 2,226,446 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $607,241,000 after acquiring an additional 22,170 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its position in Labcorp by 2.2% during the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,332,775 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $355,569,000 after acquiring an additional 28,584 shares during the period. Royal Bank of Canada boosted its position in Labcorp by 19.4% during the 1st quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 820,442 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $218,901,000 after acquiring an additional 133,549 shares during the period. Diamond Hill Capital Management LLC Investment Advisor acquired a new position in Labcorp during the 2nd quarter worth $168,222,000. Finally, Bessemer Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Labcorp by 47.3% in the first quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 579,036 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $154,493,000 after purchasing an additional 185,847 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 95.94% of the company's stock.

Key Stories Impacting Labcorp

Here are the key news stories impacting Labcorp this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q3 results exceeded expectations. Labcorp reported adjusted earnings of $4.78 per share versus the $4.64 consensus estimate, while revenue rose 6.9% year over year to $3.81 billion, above the $3.76 billion forecast. Earnings also improved from $4.18 per share in the prior-year quarter. Labcorp Q3 earnings report
• Positive Sentiment: Management raised its 2026 outlook. Labcorp increased its full-year enterprise revenue-growth forecast to 5.9%-6.7% and adjusted EPS guidance to $18.30-$18.70, signaling continued confidence in demand and operating performance. Labcorp reports third-quarter results
• Positive Sentiment: Both operating segments grew. Diagnostics Laboratories revenue increased 6.5% to $2.95 billion, while Biopharma Laboratory Services revenue climbed 8.5% to $866.7 million. The company also cited margin expansion, four announced or completed transactions, and FDA approval for its PGDx elio tissue complete companion diagnostic for advanced melanoma. Labcorp Q3 outlook update
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts became more constructive. Robert W. Baird raised its price target from $361 to $396 and assigned an “outperform” rating, while Truist increased its target from $365 to $395 and maintained a “buy” rating. Truist raises Labcorp price target
• Neutral Sentiment: Labcorp expanded access to FDA-approved HPV screening tests through a partnership with Waters, potentially supporting longer-term diagnostics adoption. Waters and Labcorp HPV testing partnership
• Negative Sentiment: Recent insider-trading data showed only sales by Labcorp insiders over the past six months, with no reported open-market purchases. This may modestly temper sentiment, although the transactions do not change the stronger earnings-driven outlook.

About Labcorp

Labcorp NYSE: LH, formally Laboratory Corporation of America Holdings, is a global life sciences and healthcare company headquartered in Burlington, North Carolina. The company provides laboratory testing and diagnostic services to physicians, hospitals, health systems, employers, insurers and consumers.

Through its diagnostics operations, Labcorp offers routine and specialty testing, oncology diagnostics, women's health testing, genetic testing, pathology services and other laboratory services.

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