Handelsinvest Investeringsforvaltning Sells 711 Shares of Laboratory Co. of America Holdings (NYSE:LH)

Handelsinvest Investeringsforvaltning reduced its stake in shares of Laboratory Co. of America Holdings (NYSE:LH) by 14.8% in the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 4,087 shares of the medical research company’s stock after selling 711 shares during the period. Handelsinvest Investeringsforvaltning’s holdings in Laboratory Co. of America were worth $893,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Northern Trust Corp boosted its holdings in Laboratory Co. of America by 3.0% in the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 1,163,252 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $264,396,000 after purchasing an additional 33,493 shares during the period. Bank of Nova Scotia boosted its holdings in Laboratory Co. of America by 1,715.7% in the 4th quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia now owns 175,176 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $39,814,000 after purchasing an additional 165,528 shares during the period. Allianz Asset Management GmbH boosted its holdings in Laboratory Co. of America by 6.9% in the 4th quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH now owns 63,639 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $14,465,000 after purchasing an additional 4,103 shares during the period. First National Bank of Mount Dora Trust Investment Services purchased a new stake in shares of Laboratory Co. of America during the 1st quarter valued at $1,418,000. Finally, Alexander Randolph Advisory Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Laboratory Co. of America during the 4th quarter worth $942,000. 95.94% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Laboratory Co. of America news, CAO Peter J. Wilkinson sold 2,439 shares of Laboratory Co. of America stock in a transaction on Monday, April 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $204.33, for a total value of $498,360.87. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 2,087 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $426,436.71. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In other news, CAO Peter J. Wilkinson sold 2,439 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $204.33, for a total value of $498,360.87. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 2,087 shares in the company, valued at approximately $426,436.71. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Der Vaart Sandra D. Van sold 2,000 shares of Laboratory Co. of America stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $210.83, for a total transaction of $421,660.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 5,637 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,188,448.71. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 4,939 shares of company stock valued at $1,021,078 in the last three months. Corporate insiders own 0.85% of the company’s stock.

Laboratory Co. of America Stock Down 0.2 %

LH opened at $202.24 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 0.88, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39. Laboratory Co. of America Holdings has a 1-year low of $191.97 and a 1-year high of $234.09. The company has a market capitalization of $17.05 billion, a PE ratio of 40.79, a PEG ratio of 1.53 and a beta of 1.05. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $202.25 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $212.73.

Laboratory Co. of America (NYSE:LH) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 25th. The medical research company reported $3.68 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.48 by $0.20. The firm had revenue of $3.18 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.12 billion. Laboratory Co. of America had a net margin of 3.52% and a return on equity of 14.68%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $3.82 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Laboratory Co. of America Holdings will post 14.87 EPS for the current year.

Laboratory Co. of America Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, June 12th. Investors of record on Tuesday, May 28th were paid a dividend of $0.72 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 24th. This represents a $2.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.42%. Laboratory Co. of America’s payout ratio is 57.95%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

LH has been the subject of several recent research reports. Robert W. Baird lowered their price target on shares of Laboratory Co. of America from $255.00 to $244.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, April 26th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on shares of Laboratory Co. of America from $261.00 to $243.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, May 30th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Laboratory Co. of America from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 4th. Truist Financial lowered their price objective on shares of Laboratory Co. of America from $270.00 to $255.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, April 26th. Finally, Barclays lowered their price objective on shares of Laboratory Co. of America from $234.00 to $213.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, April 26th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $241.86.

Laboratory Co. of America Company Profile

Laboratory Corporation of America Holdings operates as a life sciences company that provides vital information to help doctors, hospitals, pharmaceutical companies, researchers, and patients make clear and confident decisions. It operates in two segments, Labcorp Diagnostics (Dx) and Biopharma Laboratory Services (BLS).