Yahoo Finance If You Had Bought Laboratory Corporation of America Holdings (NYSE:LH) Shares Five Years Ago You'd Have Earned 116% Returns
When you buy shares in a company, it's worth keeping in mind the possibility that it could fail, and you could lose your money. But on a lighter note, a good company can see its share price rise well over 100%. For instance, the price of Laboratory Corporation of America Holdings (NYSE:LH) stock is up an impressive 116% over the last five years. On top of that, the share price is up 26% in about a quarter.
See our latest analysis for Laboratory Corporation of America Holdings
There is no denying that markets are sometimes efficient, but prices do not always reflect underlying business performance. One flawed but reasonable way to assess how sentiment around a company has changed is to compare the earnings per share (EPS) with the share price.
Over half a decade, Laboratory Corporation of America Holdings managed to grow its earnings per share at 29% a year. The EPS growth is more impressive than the yearly share price gain of 17% over the same period. So it seems the market isn't so enthusiastic about the stock these days.
The image below shows how EPS has tracked over time (if you click on the image you can see greater detail).
We're pleased to report that the CEO is remunerated more modestly than most CEOs at similarly capitalized companies. But while CEO remuneration is always worth checking, the really important question is whether the company can grow earnings going forward. This free interactive report on Laboratory Corporation of America Holdings' earnings, revenue and cash flow is a great place to start, if you want to investigate the stock further.
A Different Perspective
We're pleased to report that Laboratory Corporation of America Holdings shareholders have received a total shareholder return of 101% over one year. That's better than the annualised return of 17% over half a decade, implying that the company is doing better recently. Someone with an optimistic perspective could view the recent improvement in TSR as indicating that the business itself is getting better with time. While it is well worth considering the different impacts that market conditions can have on the share price, there are other factors that are even more important. Even so, be aware that Laboratory Corporation of America Holdings is showing 4 warning signs in our investment analysis , and 1 of those doesn't sit too well with us...
If you like to buy stocks alongside management, then you might just love this free list of companies. (Hint: insiders have been buying them).
Please note, the market returns quoted in this article reflect the market weighted average returns of stocks that currently trade on US exchanges.
This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned.
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