Cibc World Market Inc. Increases Stake in Quest Diagnostics Incorporated $DGX

Cibc World Market Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX) by 209.6% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 7,765 shares of the medical research company’s stock after buying an additional 5,257 shares during the period. Cibc World Market Inc.’s holdings in Quest Diagnostics were worth $1,480,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. ING Groep NV acquired a new stake in Quest Diagnostics during the 3rd quarter worth about $3,173,000. Stratos Wealth Partners LTD. acquired a new position in Quest Diagnostics in the 3rd quarter worth about $282,000. Baader Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted its position in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 4.9% during the 3rd quarter. Baader Bank Aktiengesellschaft now owns 2,331 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $444,000 after buying an additional 108 shares in the last quarter. Versor Investments LP grew its stake in Quest Diagnostics by 198.7% in the 3rd quarter. Versor Investments LP now owns 6,386 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $1,217,000 after acquiring an additional 4,248 shares during the period. Finally, Wesbanco Bank Inc. increased its stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 21.4% during the third quarter. Wesbanco Bank Inc. now owns 4,604 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $877,000 after purchasing an additional 812 shares in the last quarter. 88.06% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Quest Diagnostics

In related news, CEO J. E. Davis sold 55,093 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $192.22, for a total value of $10,589,976.46. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 120,480 shares in the company, valued at approximately $23,158,665.60. This trade represents a 31.38% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, SVP Patrick Plewman sold 5,662 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $204.00, for a total value of $1,155,048.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president owned 15,381 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,137,724. This represents a 26.91% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 62,005 shares of company stock valued at $11,984,724. Company insiders own 8.16% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Evercore ISI set a $220.00 price target on shares of Quest Diagnostics in a research note on Wednesday, February 11th. Robert W. Baird set a $219.00 target price on Quest Diagnostics in a report on Wednesday, February 11th. Piper Sandler lifted their target price on Quest Diagnostics from $190.00 to $200.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, October 27th. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price target on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $215.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 10th. Finally, Barclays raised their price objective on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $210.00 to $225.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 11th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $208.93.

Quest Diagnostics Stock Performance

Shares of DGX stock opened at $206.66 on Tuesday. The company has a market cap of $22.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.62, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.67 and a beta of 0.66. Quest Diagnostics Incorporated has a 12-month low of $157.20 and a 12-month high of $213.20. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $183.74 and a 200-day simple moving average of $182.88. The company has a current ratio of 1.04, a quick ratio of 0.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72.

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 10th. The medical research company reported $2.42 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.35 by $0.07. The firm had revenue of $2.81 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.75 billion. Quest Diagnostics had a return on equity of 15.57% and a net margin of 8.99%.Quest Diagnostics’s quarterly revenue was up 7.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business posted $2.23 EPS. Quest Diagnostics has set its FY 2026 guidance at 9.45-9.650 EPS. On average, equities analysts forecast that Quest Diagnostics Incorporated will post 9.7 EPS for the current year.

Quest Diagnostics declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback plan on Tuesday, February 10th that authorizes the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the medical research company to reacquire up to 4.7% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are often a sign that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Quest Diagnostics Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 20th. Shareholders of record on Monday, April 6th will be issued a $0.86 dividend. This is a boost from Quest Diagnostics’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.80. The ex-dividend date is Monday, April 6th. This represents a $3.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.7%. Quest Diagnostics’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 36.57%.

About Quest Diagnostics

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.