Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX) Receives Average Rating of “Hold” from Analysts

Shares of Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX) have been given a consensus recommendation of “Hold” by the eleven analysts that are currently covering the company, MarketBeat.com reports. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 1-year target price among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $144.18.

DGX has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. SVB Leerink initiated coverage on shares of Quest Diagnostics in a research report on Monday, February 26th. They set a “market perform” rating and a $135.00 price objective for the company. TheStreet downgraded shares of Quest Diagnostics from a “b-” rating to a “c” rating in a report on Monday, February 5th. Leerink Partnrs reaffirmed a “market perform” rating on shares of Quest Diagnostics in a report on Monday, February 26th. Barclays assumed coverage on shares of Quest Diagnostics in a report on Wednesday, January 3rd. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $145.00 target price for the company. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded shares of Quest Diagnostics from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 17th.

Insider Transactions at Quest Diagnostics

In other news, SVP Michael E. Prevoznik sold 5,611 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $125.88, for a total value of $706,312.68. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 38,478 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,843,610.64. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In other news, SVP Michael E. Prevoznik sold 661 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $126.14, for a total value of $83,378.54. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 40,206 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,071,584.84. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Michael E. Prevoznik sold 5,611 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $125.88, for a total transaction of $706,312.68. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 38,478 shares in the company, valued at $4,843,610.64. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 15,150 shares of company stock valued at $1,913,202. Corporate insiders own 0.79% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Quest Diagnostics

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. American Century Companies Inc. increased its stake in Quest Diagnostics by 12.3% during the 3rd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 3,554,517 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $433,153,000 after buying an additional 388,162 shares during the period. Victory Capital Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 1.8% in the 4th quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 3,476,628 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $479,357,000 after purchasing an additional 62,114 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its position in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 0.7% in the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 2,632,326 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $362,945,000 after purchasing an additional 18,533 shares during the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its position in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 36.8% in the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 2,001,347 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $243,884,000 after purchasing an additional 538,377 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Invesco Ltd. increased its position in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 5.4% in the 3rd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 1,798,803 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $219,202,000 after purchasing an additional 92,542 shares during the last quarter. 88.06% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Quest Diagnostics Stock Performance

Shares of DGX opened at $130.09 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70, a current ratio of 1.31 and a quick ratio of 1.20. Quest Diagnostics has a one year low of $119.59 and a one year high of $148.62. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $128.32 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $130.95. The firm has a market capitalization of $14.45 billion, a PE ratio of 17.37, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.77 and a beta of 0.91.

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 1st. The medical research company reported $2.15 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.11 by $0.04. Quest Diagnostics had a net margin of 9.23% and a return on equity of 15.79%. The firm had revenue of $2.29 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.25 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.98 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was down 1.9% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts anticipate that Quest Diagnostics will post 8.75 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Quest Diagnostics Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 22nd. Stockholders of record on Monday, April 8th were given a $0.75 dividend. This is a positive change from Quest Diagnostics’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.71. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, April 5th. This represents a $3.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.31%. Quest Diagnostics’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 37.92%.

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.