Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX) Shares Purchased by Mizuho Securities USA LLC

Mizuho Securities USA LLC raised its position in Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX) by 46.6% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 10,579 shares of the medical research company’s stock after acquiring an additional 3,361 shares during the quarter. Mizuho Securities USA LLC’s holdings in Quest Diagnostics were worth $1,596,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the business. State Street Corp increased its position in Quest Diagnostics by 1.4% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 5,263,231 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $817,117,000 after acquiring an additional 70,578 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 1.5% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,616,653 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $404,838,000 after purchasing an additional 39,217 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its holdings in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 14.8% during the fourth quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 881,764 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $133,023,000 after purchasing an additional 113,956 shares during the period. Amundi lifted its holdings in Quest Diagnostics by 10.8% in the fourth quarter. Amundi now owns 795,485 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $122,528,000 after purchasing an additional 77,559 shares during the period. Finally, BNP Paribas Financial Markets grew its position in Quest Diagnostics by 25.4% in the 3rd quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 747,298 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $116,018,000 after buying an additional 151,365 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 88.06% of the company’s stock.

Quest Diagnostics Trading Down 1.1 %

Quest Diagnostics stock opened at $165.49 on Wednesday. Quest Diagnostics Incorporated has a 52 week low of $125.42 and a 52 week high of $178.87. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.82, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a current ratio of 1.10. The firm has a market capitalization of $18.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.52, a P/E/G ratio of 2.16 and a beta of 0.92. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $165.70 and a 200 day moving average price of $158.82.

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The medical research company reported $2.23 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 forecast that Quest Diagnostics Incorporated will post 9.7 EPS for the current year.

Quest Diagnostics Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 21st. Shareholders of record on Monday, April 7th will be paid a dividend of $0.80 per share. This represents a $3.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.93%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, April 7th. This is a boost from Quest Diagnostics’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.75. Quest Diagnostics’s payout ratio is 41.61%.

Insider Activity

In other Quest Diagnostics news, SVP Mark E. Delaney sold 403 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $164.30, for a total value of $66,212.90. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 4,624 shares in the company, valued at approximately $759,723.20. This represents a 8.02 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Catherine T. Doherty sold 5,370 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $174.13, for a total transaction of $935,078.10. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 68,068 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,852,680.84. The trade was a 7.31 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 14,157 shares of company stock worth $2,423,755 in the last 90 days. Company insiders own 0.79% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts recently commented on DGX shares. Truist Financial boosted their target price on Quest Diagnostics from $172.00 to $182.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. UBS Group boosted their price objective on Quest Diagnostics from $166.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Barclays raised their target price on Quest Diagnostics from $168.00 to $175.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Piper Sandler reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $180.00 price target (up from $165.00) on shares of Quest Diagnostics in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, Mizuho raised their price objective on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $177.00 to $178.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Quest Diagnostics presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $178.38.

About Quest Diagnostics

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.