USS Investment Management Ltd Decreases Position in Laboratory Co. of America Holdings (NYSE:LH)

USS Investment Management Ltd cut its holdings in Laboratory Co. of America Holdings (NYSE:LH - Free Report) by 24.5% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 13,440 shares of the medical research company's stock after selling 4,357 shares during the quarter. USS Investment Management Ltd's holdings in Laboratory Co. of America were worth $3,083,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Graney & King LLC acquired a new position in shares of Laboratory Co. of America during the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. raised its holdings in Laboratory Co. of America by 309.8% in the fourth quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 168 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $39,000 after buying an additional 127 shares during the period. Human Investing LLC purchased a new position in Laboratory Co. of America in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $39,000. Heck Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Laboratory Co. of America in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $44,000. Finally, SBI Securities Co. Ltd. acquired a new stake in Laboratory Co. of America in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $52,000. 95.94% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Kerrii B. Anderson sold 500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $255.63, for a total transaction of $127,815.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 13,166 shares in the company, valued at $3,365,624.58. This trade represents a 3.66% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Adam H. Schechter sold 6,105 shares of Laboratory Co. of America stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $248.73, for a total value of $1,518,496.65. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 98,962 shares in the company, valued at approximately $24,614,818.26. This represents a 5.81% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 15,431 shares of company stock valued at $3,806,274. Corporate insiders own 0.84% of the company's stock.

Laboratory Co. of America Price Performance

Laboratory Co. of America stock traded down $0.12 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $246.19. The company's stock had a trading volume of 154,161 shares, compared to its average volume of 639,320. Laboratory Co. of America Holdings has a 52 week low of $191.97 and a 52 week high of $258.59. The company has a current ratio of 1.44, a quick ratio of 1.30 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $234.81 and a 200-day moving average price of $238.32. The stock has a market cap of $20.61 billion, a PE ratio of 27.91, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.71 and a beta of 0.82.

Laboratory Co. of America (NYSE:LH - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The medical research company reported $3.84 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.73 by $0.11. Laboratory Co. of America had a return on equity of 15.29% and a net margin of 5.73%. The firm had revenue of $3.35 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.41 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $3.68 earnings per share. The company's revenue was up 5.3% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Laboratory Co. of America Holdings will post 16.01 EPS for the current year.

Laboratory Co. of America Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, June 11th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 29th will be issued a dividend of $0.72 per share. This represents a $2.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.17%. Laboratory Co. of America's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 33.29%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price target on shares of Laboratory Co. of America from $275.00 to $290.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Citigroup raised shares of Laboratory Co. of America from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and raised their price target for the stock from $250.00 to $300.00 in a research report on Tuesday, March 4th. Piper Sandler reissued a "neutral" rating and set a $280.00 price target (up previously from $260.00) on shares of Laboratory Co. of America in a research report on Tuesday, May 6th. Robert W. Baird lifted their price objective on shares of Laboratory Co. of America from $253.00 to $267.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 30th. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Laboratory Co. of America from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, April 18th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $270.62.

Laboratory Co. of America Profile

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