Labcorp (NYSE:LH) Reaches New 1-Year High - Still a Buy?

Labcorp Holdings Inc. (NYSE:LH - Get Free Report)'s share price reached a new 52-week high during trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $265.72 and last traded at $265.39, with a volume of 133879 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $262.51.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have issued reports on LH shares. Robert W. Baird raised their price target on Labcorp from $253.00 to $267.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. Truist Financial increased their price objective on shares of Labcorp from $274.00 to $290.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, May 12th. Redburn Atlantic began coverage on shares of Labcorp in a research report on Wednesday, April 2nd. They issued a "buy" rating and a $276.00 target price on the stock. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Labcorp from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, April 18th. Finally, Morgan Stanley increased their price target on shares of Labcorp from $270.00 to $283.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 11th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Labcorp has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $276.08.

Labcorp Stock Up 0.7%

The firm's 50-day moving average price is $251.44 and its 200-day moving average price is $241.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68, a current ratio of 1.84 and a quick ratio of 1.60. The company has a market cap of $21.92 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.28, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.65 and a beta of 0.82.

Labcorp (NYSE:LH - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly 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 firm had revenue of $3.35 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.41 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $3.68 EPS. The firm's revenue was up 5.3% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts forecast that Labcorp Holdings Inc. will post 16.01 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Labcorp Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, June 11th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 29th were paid a $0.72 dividend. This represents a $2.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.10%. Labcorp's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 33.29%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Labcorp

In other Labcorp news, EVP Brian J. Caveney sold 2,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $247.00, for a total value of $494,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 30,067 shares in the company, valued at $7,426,549. This represents a 6.24% 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, CAO Peter J. Wilkinson sold 829 shares of Labcorp stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $242.26, for a total transaction of $200,833.54. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer owned 2,054 shares in the company, valued at $497,602.04. This represents a 28.75% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 11,834 shares of company stock worth $2,928,714. Insiders own 0.84% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Labcorp

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in LH. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Labcorp by 0.7% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 9,722,508 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $2,262,817,000 after acquiring an additional 71,464 shares during the last quarter. Select Equity Group L.P. grew its stake in Labcorp by 39.1% during the 1st quarter. Select Equity Group L.P. now owns 2,220,056 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $516,696,000 after purchasing an additional 624,099 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in Labcorp by 2.0% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,003,998 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $458,334,000 after purchasing an additional 39,255 shares during the last quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC increased its holdings in Labcorp by 2.1% during the 1st quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 1,957,319 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $455,370,000 after purchasing an additional 40,814 shares during the last quarter. Finally, FMR LLC raised its position in shares of Labcorp by 2.2% in the 4th quarter. FMR LLC now owns 1,620,826 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $371,688,000 after purchasing an additional 34,429 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 95.94% of the company's stock.

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.