Laboratory Corp. of America Holdings First Quarter Earnings Sneak Peek

S&P 500 (NYSE:SPY) component Laboratory Corp. of America Holdings (NYSE:LH) will unveil its latest earnings on Thursday, April 19, 2012. Laboratory Corporation of America provides testing services used by the medical profession in patient diagnosis and in the monitoring and treatment of disease.

Laboratory Corp. of America Holdings Earnings Preview Cheat Sheet

Wall St. Earnings Expectations: The average estimate of analysts is for profit of $1.67 per share, a rise of 4.4% from the company’s actual earnings for the same quarter a year ago. During the past three months, the average estimate has moved down from $1.68. Between one and three months ago, the average estimate moved down. It has been unchanged at $1.67 during the last month. Analysts are projecting profit to rise by 9.6% compared to last year’s $6.98.

Past Earnings Performance: The company has beaten estimates the last four quarters and is coming off a quarter where it topped forecasts by 4 cents, reporting net income of $1.56 per share against a mean estimate of profit of $1.52 per share.

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Wall St. Revenue Expectations: Analysts predict a rise of 2.2% in revenue from the year-earlier quarter to $1.4 billion.

Analyst Ratings: Optimism surrounds Laboratory Corp. of America Holdings, as eight analysts rate it as a buy, one rates it as a sell, and nine rate it as a hold.

A Look Back: In the fourth quarter of the last fiscal year, profit rose 2.7% to $135.4 million ($1.35 a share) from $131.8 million ($1.24 a share) the year earlier, exceeding analyst expectations. Revenue rose 5.5% to $1.37 billion from $1.3 billion.

Key Stats:

On the top line, the company is looking to build on four-straight revenue increases heading into this earnings announcement. Revenue rose 14.6% in the first quarter of the last fiscal year, 13.3% in the second quarter of the last fiscal year and 10% in the third quarter of the last fiscal year before increasing again in the fourth quarter of the last fiscal year of the last fiscal year.

Last quarter’s earnings rise was a switch from preceding drops, so the upcoming earnings announcement is a chance to build on last quarter’s result. Net income fell in the first quarter of the last fiscal year, the second quarter of the last fiscal year and the third quarter of the last fiscal year before snapping that run with a profit increase in the fourth quarter of the last fiscal year.

Stock Price Performance: Between March 15, 2012 and April 13, 2012, the stock price dropped $2.08 (-2.3%), from $90.60 to $88.52. The stock price saw one of its best stretches over the last year between November 21, 2011 and December 5, 2011, when shares rose for 10 straight days, increasing 8.9% (+$7.04) over that span. It saw one of its worst periods between July 19, 2011 and July 27, 2011 when shares fell for seven straight days, dropping 7% (-$6.82) over that span.

(Company fundamentals by Xignite Financials. Earnings estimates provided by Zacks)

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