Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX) Price Target Raised to $155.00 at Mizuho

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX) had its price objective raised by research analysts at Mizuho from $150.00 to $155.00 in a report issued on Wednesday, Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a “buy” rating on the medical research company’s stock. Mizuho’s price target indicates a potential upside of 14.42% from the stock’s previous close.

Several other brokerages have also issued reports on DGX. SVB Leerink began coverage on Quest Diagnostics in a research report on Monday, February 26th. They issued a “market perform” rating and a $135.00 price objective for the company. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded Quest Diagnostics from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $140.00 to $155.00 in a research report on Wednesday, February 7th. Barclays assumed coverage on Quest Diagnostics in a research report on Wednesday, January 3rd. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $145.00 price objective for the company. Leerink Partnrs reaffirmed a “market perform” rating on shares of Quest Diagnostics in a research report on Monday, February 26th. Finally, Truist Financial reaffirmed a “hold” rating and set a $145.00 price target on shares of Quest Diagnostics in a research report on Wednesday, March 20th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Quest Diagnostics currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $146.17.

Quest Diagnostics Price Performance

Shares of DGX opened at $135.47 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59, a quick ratio of 1.20 and a current ratio of 0.97. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $128.89 and a 200 day simple moving average of $131.11. Quest Diagnostics has a 52-week low of $119.59 and a 52-week high of $147.96. The firm has a market capitalization of $15.04 billion, a PE ratio of 18.09, a P/E/G ratio of 2.95 and a beta of 0.91.

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 23rd. The medical research company reported $2.04 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.86 by $0.18. Quest Diagnostics had a return on equity of 15.52% and a net margin of 9.11%. The business had revenue of $2.37 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.29 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $2.04 EPS. Quest Diagnostics’s quarterly revenue was up 1.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts predict that Quest Diagnostics will post 8.75 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Quest Diagnostics

In other news, SVP Michael E. Prevoznik sold 661 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $126.14, for a total transaction of $83,378.54. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 40,206 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,071,584.84. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In related news, Director Vicky B. Gregg sold 2,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, February 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $126.64, for a total value of $316,600.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 16,329 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,067,904.56. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Michael E. Prevoznik sold 661 shares of the stock in a transaction 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 completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 40,206 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,071,584.84. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 15,150 shares of company stock worth $1,913,202 in the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.79% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Quest Diagnostics

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Raymond James & Associates raised its stake in Quest Diagnostics by 103.3% in the 4th quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 148,251 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $20,441,000 after acquiring an additional 75,315 shares during the period. CHURCHILL MANAGEMENT Corp acquired a new position in Quest Diagnostics in the 4th quarter valued at $1,483,000. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its holdings in Quest Diagnostics by 14.6% in the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 2,613,793 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $318,517,000 after buying an additional 333,947 shares in the last quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. grew its holdings in Quest Diagnostics by 201.5% in the 4th quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 31,912 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $4,400,000 after buying an additional 21,327 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Strs Ohio grew its holdings in Quest Diagnostics by 7.6% in the 4th quarter. Strs Ohio now owns 16,270 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $2,243,000 after buying an additional 1,150 shares in the last quarter. 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.