UPDATE: Goldman Sachs Upgrades Laboratory Corp of America Holdings to Neutral on Stability, Defensiveness

Goldman Sachs raises its rating on Laboratory Corp of America Holdings

from Sell to Neutral and raises its price target from $79 to $86. Goldman Sachs comments, "We upgrade shares of LH to Neutral from Sell and our 6-month $86 price target now implies 7.1% downside. Our upgrade is based on the following three points (1) a stable volume outlook, (2) strong FCF generation and balance sheet stability, (3) limited-to-zero exposure to ex-US macro uncertainty. As a result, we see a more balanced risk/reward for LH shares at this time. Since adding LH to the Sell List on 12/14/11, the shares are +14% vs. the S&P 500 +12% given better-than-expected volumes. Over the past 12 months, LH is -3% vs. the S&P 500 +4%." LH closed at $92.61 on Friday.