Labcorp Holdings, Inc. LH recently entered into a comprehensive strategic agreement with Graves Gilbert Clinic, the largest physician-owned medical group in South-Central Kentucky. The partnership will support their efforts to reduce costs, improve access and reinforce their position as the high-value care provider in the region.

The latest development follows other strategic collaborations that Labcorp has established with a range of local and regional health systems, enhancing services for patients and providers.

LH Stock’s Likely Trend Following the News

Since the announcement on Dec. 19, Labcorp shares have gained 1.1%, finishing at $229.49. The company has an extensive pipeline of potential hospital and local laboratory acquisitions, which presents ample opportunities for its growth. Labcorp is successfully executing its strategic priorities by being a partner of choice for health systems and regional local laboratories, leveraging science and innovation to expand leadership in important therapeutic areas and utilizing data and technology to deliver important services and capabilities to the customers. Henceforth, we expect the latest news to boost the market sentiment toward LH stock.

Labcorp has a market capitalization of $19.19 billion. Going by the Zacks Consensus Estimate, the company’s earnings are expected to grow 7.1% on a 0.7% improvement in revenues. It surpassed earnings estimates in each of the trailing four quarters, with an average beat of 2.87%.

More on LH’s New Alliance

Since its founding, the Graves Gilbert Clinic has grown to include over 200 providers representing 30 medical specialties. The new relationship will combine important capabilities, experience and technologies from both organizations to enhance laboratory services and further the delivery of high-quality care. Both are committed to working together to plan and implement a smooth, thoughtful transition that maintains continuity of services for patients, providers and clients.

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Industry Prospects Favoring LH Stock

Per a research report, the global clinical laboratory services market was at $233.24 billion in 2023 and is expected to grow at a compound annual rate of 3.5% through 2030.

The market growth is driven by factors such as the increasing burden of chronic diseases and the growing demand for early diagnostic tests. Moreover, rapid advancements in data management and sample preparation due to growing volumes of testing samples are anticipated to boost market growth during the forecast period.

More Updates From Labcorp

The company announced the commercial availability of its new H5 bird flu molecular test in the United States, amid a multistate outbreak of the H5N1 virus in poultry and dairy cows. The test was developed with support from the CDC (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) to increase access and testing capacity to support public health preparedness strategies.

This month, Labcorp has entered into an agreement with MAWD Pathology Group in Lenexa, KS, to acquire select assets of their clinical and women’s health testing businesses. Prior to that, it finalized the acquisition of select outreach laboratory services from Ballad Health. The deal aims to enhance access to comprehensive, high-quality laboratory services for communities in the Appalachian region.

LH Stock Price Performance

In the past three months, Labcorp shares have gained 3.4% compared with the industry’s 1.2% rise.

LH’s Zacks Rank and Top MedTech Stocks

Labcorp currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold).

Some better-ranked stocks in the broader medical space are Penumbra PEN, Haemonetics HAE and Phibro Animal Health PAHC, each carrying a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy) at present. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

Penumbra shares have dropped 7.6% in the past year. Estimates for the company’s 2024 earnings per share have increased 2 cents to $2.81 in the past 30 days. PEN’s earnings beat estimates in three of the trailing four quarters and missed on one occasion, the average surprise being 10.54%. In the last reported quarter, it posted an earnings surprise of 23.19%.

Estimates for Haemonetics’ fiscal 2025 earnings per share have remained constant at $4.59 in the past 30 days. Shares of the company have dropped 10.9% in the past year against the industry’s growth of 11.3%. HAE’s earnings surpassed estimates in three of the trailing four quarters and missed in one, the average surprise being 2.82%. In the last reported quarter, it delivered an earnings surprise of 2.75%.

Estimates for Phibro Animal Health’s fiscal 2025 earnings per share have increased 1.9% to $1.62 in the past 30 days. Shares of the company have surged 85.6% in the past year compared with the industry’s 11.3% rise. PAHC’s earnings surpassed estimates in each of the trailing four quarters, the average surprise being 25.47%. In the last reported quarter, it delivered an earnings surprise of 52.17%.

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