Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. Increases Holdings in Laboratory Co. of America Holdings (NYSE:LH)

Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. boosted its holdings in shares of Laboratory Co. of America Holdings (NYSE:LH) by 4.5% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 1,840 shares of the medical research company’s stock after purchasing an additional 79 shares during the period. Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd.’s holdings in Laboratory Co. of America were worth $418,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Provence Wealth Management Group purchased a new position in shares of Laboratory Co. of America during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $29,000. Mendota Financial Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Laboratory Co. of America during the 4th quarter worth approximately $29,000. Tradewinds Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Laboratory Co. of America during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $34,000. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC purchased a new position in shares of Laboratory Co. of America during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $37,000. Finally, Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC purchased a new position in shares of Laboratory Co. of America during the 4th quarter worth approximately $60,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 95.94% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, COO Mark S. Schroeder sold 6,477 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, April 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $217.29, for a total transaction of $1,407,387.33. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 5,036 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,094,272.44. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. In related news, COO Mark S. Schroeder sold 6,477 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, April 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $217.29, for a total value of $1,407,387.33. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 5,036 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,094,272.44. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CMO Amy B. Summy sold 227 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $218.45, for a total value of $49,588.15. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief marketing officer now directly owns 3,859 shares in the company, valued at $842,998.55. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 54,305 shares of company stock valued at $11,761,059 in the last ninety days. 0.85% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have weighed in on LH shares. SVB Leerink started coverage on Laboratory Co. of America in a report on Monday, February 26th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $260.00 target price on the stock. TheStreet downgraded Laboratory Co. of America from a “b-” rating to a “c+” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 15th. Robert W. Baird cut their price target on Laboratory Co. of America from $255.00 to $244.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday. Argus upgraded Laboratory Co. of America from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $250.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Monday, March 25th. Finally, Evercore ISI started coverage on Laboratory Co. of America in a research note on Friday, February 9th. They issued an “in-line” rating and a $240.00 price target on the stock. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Laboratory Co. of America has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $243.14.

Laboratory Co. of America Stock Performance

LH stock opened at $198.40 on Monday. The stock has a market capitalization of $16.69 billion, a PE ratio of 39.92, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.49 and a beta of 1.01. Laboratory Co. of America Holdings has a 12-month low of $174.20 and a 12-month high of $234.09. The company has a current ratio of 0.88, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $211.70 and its 200 day simple moving average is $214.85.

Laboratory Co. of America (NYSE:LH) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 25th. The medical research company reported $3.68 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.46 by $0.22. The business had revenue of $3.18 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.12 billion. Laboratory Co. of America had a return on equity of 14.68% and a net margin of 3.52%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 4.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $3.82 EPS. As a group, research analysts forecast that Laboratory Co. of America Holdings will post 14.85 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Laboratory Co. of America Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, June 12th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, May 28th will be issued a dividend of $0.72 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 24th. This represents a $2.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.45%. Laboratory Co. of America’s payout ratio is 57.95%.

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).