ProShare Advisors LLC Boosts Stake in Laboratory Co. of America Holdings (NYSE:LH)

ProShare Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Laboratory Co. of America Holdings (NYSE:LH - Free Report) by 11.8% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 12,672 shares of the medical research company's stock after buying an additional 1,342 shares during the period. ProShare Advisors LLC's holdings in Laboratory Co. of America were worth $2,906,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Barclays PLC boosted its position in shares of Laboratory Co. of America by 11.8% in the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 620,721 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $138,718,000 after purchasing an additional 65,356 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its holdings in Laboratory Co. of America by 9.5% in the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 1,930,395 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $431,405,000 after buying an additional 167,137 shares during the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. boosted its holdings in Laboratory Co. of America by 3.2% in the 4th quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 3,943 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $904,000 after buying an additional 122 shares during the last quarter. Ritholtz Wealth Management acquired a new position in shares of Laboratory Co. of America during the 4th quarter worth approximately $281,000. Finally, Wealthcare Advisory Partners LLC raised its position in shares of Laboratory Co. of America by 23.9% during the 4th quarter. Wealthcare Advisory Partners LLC now owns 2,543 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $583,000 after buying an additional 490 shares during the period. 95.94% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Laboratory Co. of America Stock Performance

NYSE LH traded up $0.80 on Friday, reaching $242.69. The stock had a trading volume of 503,833 shares, compared to its average volume of 642,309. Laboratory Co. of America Holdings has a 1-year low of $191.97 and a 1-year high of $258.59. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $234.19 and a two-hundred day moving average of $238.07. The company has a market cap of $20.31 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.52, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.71 and a beta of 0.82. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67, a current ratio of 1.44 and a quick ratio of 1.30.

Laboratory Co. of America (NYSE:LH - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 29th. The medical research company reported $3.84 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.73 by $0.11. The company had revenue of $3.35 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.41 billion. Laboratory Co. of America had a return on equity of 15.29% and a net margin of 5.73%. Laboratory Co. of America's revenue for the quarter was up 5.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $3.68 EPS. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Laboratory Co. of America Holdings will post 16.01 EPS for the current year.

Laboratory Co. of America Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, June 11th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 29th will be paid a $0.72 dividend. This represents a $2.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.19%. Laboratory Co. of America's payout ratio is 33.29%.

Insider Activity at Laboratory Co. of America

In other Laboratory Co. of America news, EVP Amy B. Summy sold 758 shares of the 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 approximately $1,228,314.34. This trade represents a 12.51% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Der Vaart Sandra D. Van sold 1,314 shares of Laboratory Co. of America stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $251.30, for a total value of $330,208.20. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 2,171 shares in the company, valued at $545,572.30. This trade represents a 37.70% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 16,971 shares of company stock worth $4,193,073. Insiders own 0.84% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on the company. UBS Group cut their price objective on Laboratory Co. of America from $293.00 to $286.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. Barclays increased their price target on shares of Laboratory Co. of America from $240.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 30th. Citigroup raised shares of Laboratory Co. of America from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and increased their target price for the company from $250.00 to $300.00 in a report on Tuesday, March 4th. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price target on shares of Laboratory Co. of America from $275.00 to $290.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, Redburn Atlantic initiated coverage on shares of Laboratory Co. of America in a report on Wednesday, April 2nd. They issued a "buy" rating and a $276.00 price target on the stock. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $270.62.

About Laboratory Co. of America

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