Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX) Lowered to Hold Rating by StockNews.com

StockNews.com downgraded shares of Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research report released on Friday morning.

A number of other equities research analysts also recently weighed in on DGX. Evercore ISI initiated coverage on shares of Quest Diagnostics in a research note on Wednesday, August 28th. They issued an “in-line” rating and a $165.00 price target on the stock. UBS Group boosted their target price on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $165.00 to $166.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Mizuho increased their price target on Quest Diagnostics from $160.00 to $174.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Citigroup boosted their price objective on Quest Diagnostics from $165.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Finally, Piper Sandler increased their target price on Quest Diagnostics from $150.00 to $165.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, October 28th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Quest Diagnostics presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $164.58.

Quest Diagnostics Price Performance

Shares of DGX traded up $3.17 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $159.37. 944,008 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 848,323. The company has a market cap of $17.79 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.42, a P/E/G ratio of 2.68 and a beta of 0.89. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $153.52 and its 200 day moving average is $146.60. Quest Diagnostics has a fifty-two week low of $123.04 and a fifty-two week high of $160.95. The company has a quick ratio of 1.17, a current ratio of 1.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.83.

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The medical research company reported $2.30 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.26 by $0.04. Quest Diagnostics had a net margin of 8.82% and a return on equity of 15.25%. The firm had revenue of $2.49 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.43 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $2.22 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 8.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Quest Diagnostics will post 8.9 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Quest Diagnostics Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, October 21st. Shareholders of record on Friday, October 4th were given a dividend of $0.75 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, October 4th. This represents a $3.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.88%. Quest Diagnostics’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 40.32%.

Insider Activity

In other news, CAO Michael J. Deppe sold 18,755 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $154.05, for a total transaction of $2,889,207.75. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 34,941 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,382,661.05. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. In other news, SVP Karthik Kuppusamy sold 1,775 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, October 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $156.92, for a total transaction of $278,533.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 9,734 shares in the company, valued at $1,527,459.28. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Michael J. Deppe sold 18,755 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $154.05, for a total transaction of $2,889,207.75. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 34,941 shares in the company, valued at $5,382,661.05. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 22,520 shares of company stock valued at $3,472,728 in the last ninety days. 0.79% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Quest Diagnostics

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S increased its holdings in Quest Diagnostics by 10.2% during the 1st quarter. BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S now owns 2,910 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $387,000 after purchasing an additional 270 shares in the last quarter. Empirical Finance LLC lifted its stake in Quest Diagnostics by 3.3% during the 1st quarter. Empirical Finance LLC now owns 4,220 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $562,000 after acquiring an additional 133 shares in the last quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. boosted its holdings in Quest Diagnostics by 35.3% during the 1st quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. now owns 46,404 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $6,177,000 after acquiring an additional 12,105 shares during the last quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP bought a new stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics in the 1st quarter worth $2,124,000. Finally, Empowered Funds LLC raised its holdings in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 892.8% in the first quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 21,177 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $2,819,000 after purchasing an additional 19,044 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 88.06% 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.