Pine Valley Investments Ltd Liability Co Decreases Stock Holdings in Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX)

Pine Valley Investments Ltd Liability Co lowered its stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGXFree Report) by 9.3% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 31,473 shares of the medical research company’s stock after selling 3,235 shares during the quarter. Pine Valley Investments Ltd Liability Co’s holdings in Quest Diagnostics were worth $4,748,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Sierra Ocean LLC purchased a new position in shares of Quest Diagnostics in the 4th quarter worth approximately $33,000. Versant Capital Management Inc boosted its stake in Quest Diagnostics by 340.4% in the fourth quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 251 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $38,000 after acquiring an additional 194 shares in the last quarter. First Financial Corp IN purchased a new position in Quest Diagnostics in the fourth quarter worth $38,000. FPC Investment Advisory Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Quest Diagnostics during the fourth quarter worth $45,000. Finally, Global Trust Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics during the 4th quarter valued at $49,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 88.06% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages recently weighed in on DGX. StockNews.com downgraded Quest Diagnostics from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Robert W. Baird set a $189.00 price target on Quest Diagnostics in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Barclays increased their price objective on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $168.00 to $175.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Bank of America boosted their target price on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $179.00 to $182.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, December 13th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $173.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $178.23.

View Our Latest Stock Analysis on Quest Diagnostics

Quest Diagnostics Price Performance

NYSE:DGX opened at $173.99 on Tuesday. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $157.99 and its two-hundred day moving average is $156.17. The firm has a market cap of $19.31 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.63, a PEG ratio of 2.16 and a beta of 0.91. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.82, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a current ratio of 1.10. Quest Diagnostics Incorporated has a one year low of $123.66 and a one year high of $175.89.

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGXGet Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The medical research company reported $2.23 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.19 by $0.04. Quest Diagnostics had a return on equity of 15.07% and a net margin of 8.80%. Research analysts expect that Quest Diagnostics Incorporated will post 9.7 EPS for the current year.

Quest Diagnostics Increases Dividend

The company 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 dividend of $0.80 per share. This represents a $3.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.84%. This is a positive change from Quest Diagnostics’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.75. The ex-dividend date is Monday, April 7th. Quest Diagnostics’s payout ratio is 41.61%.

Insider Activity at Quest Diagnostics

In related news, SVP Michael E. Prevoznik sold 604 shares of Quest Diagnostics stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $170.99, for a total value of $103,277.96. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 39,845 shares in the company, valued at $6,813,096.55. The trade was a 1.49 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Catherine T. Doherty sold 535 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $169.71, for a total value of $90,794.85. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 71,356 shares in the company, valued at $12,109,826.76. This represents a 0.74 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 2,792 shares of company stock worth $465,998 in the last three months. Company insiders own 0.79% of the company’s stock.

About Quest Diagnostics

(Free Report)

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.

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Institutional Ownership by Quarter for Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX)

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