Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX) SVP Mark E. Delaney Sells 403 Shares

Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX) SVP Mark E. Delaney sold 403 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $164.30, for a total transaction of $66,212.90. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 4,624 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $759,723.20. This trade represents a 8.02 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website.

Quest Diagnostics Stock Up 0.0 %

Shares of NYSE:DGX traded up $0.02 during trading on Friday, hitting $162.66. 499,450 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 991,275. Quest Diagnostics Incorporated has a 52 week low of $123.30 and a 52 week high of $167.08. The company has a current ratio of 1.10, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.82. The company has a market cap of $18.16 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.15, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.54 and a beta of 0.91. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $155.44 and a 200-day moving average price of $154.07.

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The medical research company reported $2.23 earnings per share 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%. As a group, research analysts forecast that Quest Diagnostics Incorporated will post 9.71 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Quest Diagnostics Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 21st. Investors of record on Monday, April 7th will be given a dividend of $0.80 per share. 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 1.97%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, April 7th. Quest Diagnostics’s dividend payout ratio is currently 41.61%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on DGX shares. Citigroup raised their target price on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $165.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Morgan Stanley upgraded shares of Quest Diagnostics from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $145.00 to $172.00 in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. UBS Group boosted their target price on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $166.00 to $170.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday. Bank of America boosted 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. Finally, Baird R W upgraded shares of Quest Diagnostics from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $177.69.

Institutional Trading of Quest Diagnostics

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Sierra Ocean LLC bought a new position in Quest Diagnostics in the fourth quarter valued at about $33,000. Versant Capital Management Inc raised its position 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 purchasing an additional 194 shares during the last quarter. First Financial Corp IN acquired a new stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics in the fourth quarter valued at about $38,000. FPC Investment Advisory Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics in the fourth quarter valued at about $45,000. Finally, Global Trust Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics in the fourth quarter valued at about $49,000. 88.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.