Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX) Upgraded by Robert W. Baird to “Outperform”

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX) was upgraded by stock analysts at Robert W. Baird from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research report issued on Wednesday, Briefing.com reports. The brokerage presently has a $182.00 price objective on the medical research company’s stock, up from their prior price objective of $157.00. Robert W. Baird’s target price suggests a potential upside of 15.58% from the stock’s previous close.

Several other brokerages also recently issued reports on DGX. Truist Financial boosted their price objective on Quest Diagnostics from $158.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, October 7th. Citigroup upgraded Quest Diagnostics from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $145.00 to $165.00 in a research report on Wednesday, July 10th. Evercore ISI initiated coverage on Quest Diagnostics in a report on Wednesday, August 28th. They set an “in-line” rating and a $165.00 price target on the stock. Barclays upped their price objective on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $144.00 to $154.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 27th. Finally, Piper Sandler raised their target price on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $145.00 to $150.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, July 29th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Quest Diagnostics presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $157.25.

Quest Diagnostics Stock Performance

Shares of DGX opened at $157.47 on Wednesday. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $152.74 and a 200-day moving average of $144.39. The company has a market cap of $17.49 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.19, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.45 and a beta of 0.89. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a current ratio of 1.00. Quest Diagnostics has a 1 year low of $120.87 and a 1 year high of $159.36.

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, July 23rd. The medical research company reported $2.35 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.31 by $0.04. Quest Diagnostics had a net margin of 8.99% and a return on equity of 15.35%. The firm had revenue of $2.40 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.39 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $2.30 EPS. Quest Diagnostics’s revenue was up 2.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Quest Diagnostics will post 8.89 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Quest Diagnostics news, SVP Karthik Kuppusamy sold 1,990 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $153.26, for a total value of $304,987.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 11,459 shares in the company, valued at $1,756,206.34. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.79% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Quest Diagnostics

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics in the third quarter valued at $225,000. Courier Capital LLC increased its holdings in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 39.7% in the 3rd quarter. Courier Capital LLC now owns 4,999 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $776,000 after purchasing an additional 1,420 shares during the period. Private Advisor Group LLC increased its holdings in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 23.7% in the 3rd quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 7,537 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $1,170,000 after purchasing an additional 1,444 shares during the period. Sebold Capital Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics during the third quarter worth approximately $210,000. Finally, Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC grew its position in Quest Diagnostics by 1.5% during the third quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 18,709 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $2,904,000 after purchasing an additional 268 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 88.06% of the company’s stock.

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.