PKO Investment Management Joint Stock Co Invests $233,000 in Labcorp Holdings Inc. (NYSE:LH)

PKO Investment Management Joint Stock Co acquired a new stake in Labcorp Holdings Inc. (NYSE:LH - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor acquired 1,000 shares of the medical research company's stock, valued at approximately $233,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Labcorp during the fourth quarter worth $239,811,000. Select Equity Group L.P. lifted its holdings in Labcorp by 150.9% in the fourth quarter. Select Equity Group L.P. now owns 1,595,957 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $365,985,000 after buying an additional 959,981 shares during the period. Amundi boosted its position in Labcorp by 344.9% during the fourth quarter. Amundi now owns 1,123,409 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $263,161,000 after acquiring an additional 870,903 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its holdings in Labcorp by 37,334.2% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 809,702 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $188,450,000 after acquiring an additional 807,539 shares during the period. Finally, Madison Investment Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Labcorp during the 4th quarter worth about $123,415,000. 95.94% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Labcorp Stock Performance

Shares of LH stock opened at $259.36 on Wednesday. Labcorp Holdings Inc. has a 12 month low of $198.96 and a 12 month high of $267.53. The firm has a market capitalization of $21.71 billion, a PE ratio of 29.98, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.67 and a beta of 0.81. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $242.08 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $239.76. The company has a current ratio of 1.84, a quick ratio of 1.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68.

Labcorp (NYSE:LH - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The medical research company reported $3.84 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $3.73 by $0.11. Labcorp had a net margin of 5.55% and a return on equity of 15.27%. The company had revenue of $3.35 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.41 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $3.68 EPS. The firm's revenue was up 5.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts forecast that Labcorp Holdings Inc. will post 16.01 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Labcorp Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, June 11th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 29th were given a dividend of $0.72 per share. This represents a $2.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.11%. Labcorp's payout ratio is 33.29%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP Amy B. Summy sold 758 shares of Labcorp stock in a transaction on Friday, March 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $231.67, for a total transaction of $175,605.86. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 5,302 shares in the company, valued at $1,228,314.34. The trade was a 12.51% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Adam H. Schechter sold 6,105 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $248.73, for a total transaction of $1,518,496.65. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 98,962 shares in the company, valued at $24,614,818.26. This trade represents a 5.81% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 12,092 shares of company stock worth $2,971,820. 0.84% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently commented on LH shares. Barclays upped their target price on Labcorp from $240.00 to $250.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 30th. Piper Sandler restated a "neutral" rating and set a $280.00 price target (up from $260.00) on shares of Labcorp in a report on Tuesday, May 6th. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on shares of Labcorp from $270.00 to $283.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 11th. Citigroup upgraded shares of Labcorp from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and boosted their target price for the company from $250.00 to $300.00 in a research report on Tuesday, March 4th. Finally, Robert W. Baird increased their target price on shares of Labcorp from $253.00 to $267.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $274.00.

About Labcorp

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

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