Blair William & Co. IL Purchases 5,218 Shares of Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX)

Blair William & Co. IL increased its position in shares of Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX) by 14.9% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 40,157 shares of the medical research company’s stock after buying an additional 5,218 shares during the period. Blair William & Co. IL’s holdings in Quest Diagnostics were worth $6,058,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Sierra Ocean LLC bought a new stake in Quest Diagnostics during the fourth quarter valued at about $33,000. Versant Capital Management Inc lifted its position in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 340.4% during the 4th quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 251 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $38,000 after purchasing an additional 194 shares during the last quarter. First Financial Corp IN acquired a new stake in Quest Diagnostics in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $38,000. FPC Investment Advisory Inc. bought a new position in Quest Diagnostics in the 4th quarter worth approximately $45,000. Finally, Global Trust Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Quest Diagnostics during the fourth quarter worth approximately $49,000. 88.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Quest Diagnostics Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:DGX opened at $167.28 on Monday. The stock has a market capitalization of $18.56 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.75, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.16 and a beta of 0.92. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $166.64 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $159.09. Quest Diagnostics Incorporated has a fifty-two week low of $125.42 and a fifty-two week high of $178.87. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.82, a current ratio of 1.10 and a quick ratio of 1.02.

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The medical research company reported $2.23 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.19 by $0.04. Quest Diagnostics had a net margin of 8.80% and a return on equity of 15.07%. As a group, analysts predict that Quest Diagnostics Incorporated will post 9.7 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Quest Diagnostics Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 21st. Stockholders of record on Monday, April 7th will be issued a $0.80 dividend. This is an increase from Quest Diagnostics’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.75. This represents a $3.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.91%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, April 7th. Quest Diagnostics’s payout ratio is presently 41.61%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group restated a “buy” rating and issued a $185.00 price objective (up previously from $175.00) on shares of Quest Diagnostics in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. Citigroup downgraded shares of Quest Diagnostics from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $185.00 price objective on the stock. in a report on Tuesday, March 4th. Bank of America increased their target price on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $179.00 to $182.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, December 13th. Piper Sandler restated a “neutral” rating and set a $180.00 price target (up from $165.00) on shares of Quest Diagnostics in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on Quest Diagnostics from $173.00 to $180.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Quest Diagnostics has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $178.38.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Quest Diagnostics news, EVP Catherine T. Doherty sold 5,370 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $174.13, for a total transaction of $935,078.10. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 68,068 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $11,852,680.84. This represents a 7.31 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Vicky B. Gregg sold 1,250 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $164.57, for a total transaction of $205,712.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 16,867 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,775,802.19. This represents a 6.90 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 14,157 shares of company stock worth $2,423,755 in the last three months. Insiders own 0.79% of the company’s stock.

Quest Diagnostics Company Profile

Quest Diagnostics Incorporated provides diagnostic testing and services in the United States and internationally. The company develops and delivers diagnostic information services, such as routine, non-routine and advanced clinical testing, anatomic pathology testing, and other diagnostic information services.