Labcorp Holdings Inc. (NYSE:LH) Given Average Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

Labcorp Holdings Inc. (NYSE:LH) has received a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the twelve ratings firms that are currently covering the company, Marketbeat.com reports. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 1-year price objective among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $304.8182.

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on LH shares. Piper Sandler lifted their target price on Labcorp from $270.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 24th. Robert W. Baird upped their target price on Labcorp from $313.00 to $326.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 18th. Morgan Stanley reiterated an “overweight” rating on shares of Labcorp in a research report on Tuesday, February 17th. Weiss Ratings raised Labcorp from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 10th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded Labcorp from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 23rd.

Labcorp Trading Up 0.2%

Shares of NYSE:LH opened at $263.57 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $21.72 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.20, a PEG ratio of 1.80 and a beta of 1.01. Labcorp has a 1-year low of $209.38 and a 1-year high of $293.72. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60, a quick ratio of 1.23 and a current ratio of 1.42. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $272.59 and a 200 day moving average price of $269.92.

Labcorp (NYSE:LH) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 17th. The medical research company reported $4.07 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.95 by $0.12. Labcorp had a net margin of 6.28% and a return on equity of 16.16%. The firm had revenue of $3.52 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.56 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $3.45 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 5.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Labcorp has set its FY 2026 guidance at 17.550-18.250 EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that Labcorp will post 16.01 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Labcorp Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 12th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 27th were given a $0.72 dividend. This represents a $2.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 27th. Labcorp’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 27.53%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Adam H. Schechter sold 8,705 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $279.96, for a total value of $2,437,051.80. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 80,773 shares in the company, valued at approximately $22,613,209.08. This represents a 9.73% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Brian J. Caveney sold 1,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $286.31, for a total transaction of $429,465.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 30,107 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,619,935.17. This represents a 4.75% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold 16,113 shares of company stock worth $4,547,450 over the last three months. 0.84% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of LH. Caldwell Trust Co acquired a new position in Labcorp during the second quarter valued at $25,000. JPL Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Labcorp during the 3rd quarter worth about $28,000. Financial Gravity Companies Inc. purchased a new position in Labcorp during the 2nd quarter valued at about $26,000. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. purchased a new position in Labcorp during the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. Finally, Hilton Head Capital Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Labcorp in the 4th quarter valued at about $27,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 95.94% of the company’s stock.

About Labcorp

Laboratory Corporation of America Holdings, commonly known as Labcorp (NYSE: LH), is a global life sciences company that provides comprehensive clinical laboratory and drug development services. The company operates a broad network of laboratories, patient service centers and specialty testing sites to deliver diagnostic information and testing solutions that support patient care, clinical decision-making and population health initiatives.

Labcorp’s core businesses encompass clinical laboratory testing and pharmaceutical development services.