Jefferies Financial Group Inc. Purchases 15,582 Shares of Laboratory Co. of America Holdings (NYSE:LH)

Jefferies Financial Group Inc. raised its stake in Laboratory Co. of America Holdings (NYSE:LH - Free Report) by 156.9% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 25,513 shares of the medical research company's stock after acquiring an additional 15,582 shares during the period. Jefferies Financial Group Inc.'s holdings in Laboratory Co. of America were worth $5,851,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Humankind Investments LLC raised its holdings in shares of Laboratory Co. of America by 1.9% during the 4th quarter. Humankind Investments LLC now owns 6,095 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $1,398,000 after buying an additional 115 shares in the last quarter. Gotham Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Laboratory Co. of America during the 4th quarter worth $5,880,000. Focus Partners Wealth raised its holdings in shares of Laboratory Co. of America by 6.8% during the 4th quarter. Focus Partners Wealth now owns 16,094 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $3,691,000 after buying an additional 1,018 shares in the last quarter. Ethic Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Laboratory Co. of America by 79.8% during the 4th quarter. Ethic Inc. now owns 2,551 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $585,000 after buying an additional 1,132 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Fairview Capital Investment Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Laboratory Co. of America by 1.8% during the 4th quarter. Fairview Capital Investment Management LLC now owns 225,840 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $51,790,000 after buying an additional 3,978 shares in the last quarter. 95.94% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CEO Adam H. Schechter sold 6,105 shares of the 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 directly owns 98,962 shares of the company's stock, valued at $24,614,818.26. This represents a 5.81% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Der Vaart Sandra D. Van sold 1,314 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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 sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 2,171 shares of the company's stock, valued at $545,572.30. The trade was a 37.70% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 16,971 shares of company stock valued at $4,193,073. 0.84% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on LH shares. Piper Sandler restated a "neutral" rating and set a $280.00 price objective (up previously from $260.00) on shares of Laboratory Co. of America in a research report on Tuesday, May 6th. StockNews.com lowered Laboratory Co. of America from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, April 18th. Redburn Atlantic started coverage on Laboratory Co. of America in a research report on Wednesday, April 2nd. They set a "buy" rating and a $276.00 price objective on the stock. Citigroup upgraded Laboratory Co. of America from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and boosted their price objective for the stock from $250.00 to $300.00 in a research report on Tuesday, March 4th. Finally, Truist Financial boosted their price objective on Laboratory Co. of America from $274.00 to $290.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, May 12th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $270.62.

Laboratory Co. of America Trading Up 1.4%

Shares of NYSE LH traded up $3.33 during trading on Friday, reaching $249.60. The company had a trading volume of 560,711 shares, compared to its average volume of 641,882. The company's fifty day moving average price is $233.57 and its 200-day moving average price is $237.64. Laboratory Co. of America Holdings has a 12 month low of $191.97 and a 12 month high of $258.59. The stock has a market cap of $20.89 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.30, a PEG ratio of 1.71 and a beta of 0.82. The company has a quick ratio of 1.30, a current ratio of 1.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67.

Laboratory Co. of America (NYSE:LH - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The medical research company reported $3.84 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 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 company earned $3.68 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 5.3% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts expect that Laboratory Co. of America Holdings will post 16.01 earnings per share for the current year.

Laboratory Co. of America Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, June 11th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 29th will be paid a dividend of $0.72 per share. This represents a $2.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.15%. Laboratory Co. of America's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 33.29%.

Laboratory Co. of America Company Profile

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