Prudential Financial Inc. Sells 63,562 Shares of Laboratory Co. of America Holdings (NYSE:LH)

Prudential Financial Inc. reduced its position in shares of Laboratory Co. of America Holdings (NYSE:LH) by 58.4% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 45,248 shares of the medical research company’s stock after selling 63,562 shares during the quarter. Prudential Financial Inc.’s holdings in Laboratory Co. of America were worth $10,376,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in LH. Private Trust Co. NA boosted its stake in Laboratory Co. of America by 3.2% during the 3rd quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 1,342 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $300,000 after acquiring an additional 41 shares during the last quarter. Bank of Montreal Can lifted its position in Laboratory Co. of America by 3.1% in the 3rd quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 149,191 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $33,135,000 after acquiring an additional 4,439 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC boosted its stake in Laboratory Co. of America by 17.0% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 1,586,397 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $354,528,000 after purchasing an additional 230,708 shares during the period. Quantbot Technologies LP acquired a new stake in shares of Laboratory Co. of America in the 3rd quarter valued at about $596,000. Finally, Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund bought a new stake in shares of Laboratory Co. of America in the third quarter valued at about $11,397,000. 95.94% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Laboratory Co. of America Stock Down 0.8 %

LH stock opened at $229.75 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.30, a current ratio of 1.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67. The firm has a market capitalization of $19.23 billion, a PE ratio of 26.05, a P/E/G ratio of 1.71 and a beta of 1.12. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $244.80 and its 200-day moving average is $234.48. Laboratory Co. of America Holdings has a twelve month low of $191.97 and a twelve month high of $258.59.

Laboratory Co. of America (NYSE:LH) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The medical research company reported $3.45 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.40 by $0.05. Laboratory Co. of America had a net margin of 5.73% and a return on equity of 15.29%. Sell-side analysts expect that Laboratory Co. of America Holdings will post 16.01 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Laboratory Co. of America Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 12th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, February 27th were issued a dividend of $0.72 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 27th. This represents a $2.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.25%. Laboratory Co. of America’s payout ratio is 32.65%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Kerrii B. Anderson sold 500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $255.63, for a total value of $127,815.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 13,166 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,365,624.58. This represents a 3.66 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Adam H. Schechter sold 6,121 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $244.62, for a total value of $1,497,319.02. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 86,445 shares in the company, valued at $21,146,175.90. This represents a 6.61 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 14,500 shares of company stock worth $3,577,572 over the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.85% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have commented on the company. Barclays cut their target price on Laboratory Co. of America from $271.00 to $260.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on shares of Laboratory Co. of America from $260.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 17th. Bank of America increased their price objective on shares of Laboratory Co. of America from $262.00 to $271.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, December 13th. Piper Sandler lifted their target price on Laboratory Co. of America from $240.00 to $260.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group increased their price target on 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. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Laboratory Co. of America has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $269.92.

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.