BNP Paribas Financial Markets Acquires 140,869 Shares of Labcorp Holdings Inc. $LH

Key Points

• BNP Paribas Financial Markets more than doubled its Labcorp stake in the fourth quarter, buying an additional 140,869 shares to bring its holdings to 253,352 shares worth about $63.6 million.
• Labcorp reported strong quarterly results, with EPS of $4.25 and revenue of $3.54 billion, both ahead of expectations; revenue rose 5.8% year over year.
• The company also announced a quarterly dividend of $0.72 per share and said analysts currently view the stock as a Moderate Buy, with a consensus price target of $308.

BNP Paribas Financial Markets grew its holdings in shares of Labcorp Holdings Inc. (NYSE:LH - Free Report) by 125.2% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 253,352 shares of the medical research company's stock after acquiring an additional 140,869 shares during the period. BNP Paribas Financial Markets owned about 0.31% of Labcorp worth $63,561,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in Labcorp by 0.4% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 9,850,631 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $2,471,326,000 after buying an additional 37,197 shares during the last quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. raised its stake in Labcorp by 20.0% during the third quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 2,637,350 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $756,878,000 after buying an additional 440,224 shares during the last quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC raised its stake in Labcorp by 10.4% during the fourth quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 2,204,276 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $554,728,000 after buying an additional 207,962 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its stake in Labcorp by 0.6% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,137,010 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $534,023,000 after buying an additional 13,775 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP raised its stake in Labcorp by 15.9% during the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 2,105,791 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $604,488,000 after buying an additional 289,029 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 95.94% of the company's stock.

Labcorp Trading Down 1.2%

NYSE:LH opened at $256.87 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68, a current ratio of 1.73 and a quick ratio of 1.54. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $263.08 and a 200-day moving average of $265.78. The company has a market cap of $21.06 billion, a PE ratio of 22.75, a PEG ratio of 1.82 and a beta of 0.91. Labcorp Holdings Inc. has a one year low of $241.81 and a one year high of $293.72.

Labcorp (NYSE:LH - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The medical research company reported $4.25 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.09 by $0.16. The company had revenue of $3.54 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.51 billion. Labcorp had a net margin of 6.66% and a return on equity of 16.29%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 5.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $3.84 earnings per share. Labcorp has set its FY 2026 guidance at 17.700-18.350 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Labcorp Holdings Inc. will post 17.99 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Labcorp Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 11th. Investors of record on Friday, May 29th will be issued a dividend of $0.72 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 29th. This represents a $2.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.1%. Labcorp's payout ratio is 25.51%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

LH has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Evercore reissued an "outperform" rating and set a $300.00 target price on shares of Labcorp in a research note on Wednesday, April 8th. Piper Sandler lifted their target price on shares of Labcorp from $270.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 24th. Robert W. Baird set a $334.00 target price on shares of Labcorp in a research note on Friday, May 1st. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Labcorp from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, May 2nd. Finally, Morgan Stanley reissued an "overweight" rating on shares of Labcorp in a research note on Tuesday, February 17th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Labcorp presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $308.00.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Adam H. Schechter sold 5,903 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $254.50, for a total transaction of $1,502,313.50. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 107,234 shares in the company, valued at approximately $27,291,053. The trade was a 5.22% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Company insiders own 0.84% of the company's stock.

Labcorp Profile

Laboratory Corporation of America Holdings, commonly known as Labcorp NYSE: LH, is a global life sciences company that provides comprehensive clinical laboratory and drug development services. The company operates a broad network of laboratories, patient service centers and specialty testing sites to deliver diagnostic information and testing solutions that support patient care, clinical decision-making and population health initiatives.

Labcorp's core businesses encompass clinical laboratory testing and pharmaceutical development services.

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