Robert W. Baird Issues Positive Forecast for Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX) Stock Price

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX) had its target price upped by Robert W. Baird from $236.00 to $255.00 in a research note published on Friday morning, Marketbeat Ratings reports. The firm currently has a neutral rating on the medical research company’s stock.

Several other equities analysts have also weighed in on the stock. Barclays increased their price objective on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $230.00 to $250.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Quest Diagnostics from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b+)” rating in a report on Thursday, July 9th. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $245.00 price target on shares of Quest Diagnostics in a research note on Thursday. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Quest Diagnostics from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, July 20th. Finally, Evercore set a $225.00 price objective on Quest Diagnostics in a report on Tuesday, April 21st. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Quest Diagnostics currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $231.73.

Quest Diagnostics Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE DGX opened at $228.05 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.59, a quick ratio of 1.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72. The company has a market capitalization of $25.24 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.21, a P/E/G ratio of 2.61 and a beta of 0.58. Quest Diagnostics has a 12 month low of $165.78 and a 12 month high of $237.78. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $203.23 and a 200-day moving average of $197.59.

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 23rd. The medical research company reported $3.12 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.82 by $0.30. Quest Diagnostics had a return on equity of 16.01% and a net margin of 9.18%.The business had revenue of $3.04 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.97 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $2.62 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.2% on a year-over-year basis. Quest Diagnostics has set its FY 2026 guidance at 11.050-11.250 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Quest Diagnostics will post 11.15 EPS for the current year.

Quest Diagnostics Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 22nd. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, July 8th were given a $0.86 dividend. This represents a $3.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, July 8th. Quest Diagnostics’s payout ratio is presently 36.52%.

Insider Transactions at Quest Diagnostics

In other Quest Diagnostics news, CEO J. E. Davis sold 10,000 shares of Quest Diagnostics stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $194.14, for a total value of $1,941,400.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 132,423 shares in the company, valued at $25,708,601.22. The trade was a 7.02% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, SVP Karthik Kuppusamy sold 8,147 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $200.00, for a total transaction of $1,629,400.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 13,510 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,702,000. This represents a 37.62% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders own 0.88% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 1.0% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 14,392,082 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $2,497,458,000 after buying an additional 140,450 shares during the period. State Street Corp increased its stake in Quest Diagnostics by 3.0% during the 4th quarter. State Street Corp now owns 5,382,547 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $934,033,000 after acquiring an additional 158,617 shares during the period. Boston Partners raised its holdings in Quest Diagnostics by 32.8% in the 3rd quarter. Boston Partners now owns 4,036,881 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $767,978,000 after acquiring an additional 997,033 shares in the last quarter. Morgan Stanley raised its holdings in Quest Diagnostics by 17.8% in the 4th quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 2,693,568 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $467,415,000 after acquiring an additional 406,658 shares in the last quarter. Finally, EdgePoint Investment Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 35.1% during the 1st quarter. EdgePoint Investment Group Inc. now owns 2,243,869 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $439,753,000 after acquiring an additional 582,797 shares during the period. 88.06% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Quest Diagnostics News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Quest Diagnostics this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Quest Diagnostics posted Q2 results that beat Wall Street expectations on both revenue and earnings, helped by stronger demand for routine diagnostic and preventive testing. The company also raised its full-year 2026 outlook, which investors are reading as evidence that growth is holding up well. Article: Quest Diagnostics Reports Second Quarter 2026 Financial Results; Raises Revenue and EPS Guidance for Full Year 2026
• Positive Sentiment: Mizuho raised its price target on DGX to $260 and kept an outperform rating, signaling confidence that the company can still outperform from here. Article: Quest Diagnostics price target raised by Mizuho
• Positive Sentiment: Truist also lifted its target to $250, while Robert W. Baird increased its target to $255, reflecting continued analyst optimism after the earnings beat and raised guidance. Article: Quest Diagnostics price target raised by Truist Financial Corporation
• Neutral Sentiment: Several market commentary pieces highlighted DGX as a momentum stock and noted the shares recently reached a 52-week high. That supports bullish sentiment, but these articles are mostly follow-up coverage rather than a new fundamental catalyst. Article: Are You Looking for a Top Momentum Pick? Why Quest Diagnostics (DGX) Is a Great Choice

Quest Diagnostics Company Profile

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE: DGX) is a leading provider of diagnostic information services that supports clinical decision-making for patients, physicians and healthcare organizations. The company operates a network of clinical laboratories and patient service centers that perform a broad range of laboratory tests and diagnostic assays used in routine care, disease diagnosis, monitoring and screening.

Its services span core clinical laboratory testing, anatomic pathology, molecular and genomic diagnostics, infectious disease testing and toxicology.