Zacks Research Issues Positive Outlook for DGX Earnings

Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX) – Research analysts at Zacks Research increased their Q1 2026 EPS estimates for shares of Quest Diagnostics in a research report issued to clients and investors on Monday, March 2nd. Zacks Research analyst Team now forecasts that the medical research company will post earnings per share of $2.37 for the quarter, up from their prior forecast of $2.32. The consensus estimate for Quest Diagnostics’ current full-year earnings is $9.70 per share. Zacks Research also issued estimates for Quest Diagnostics’ Q2 2026 earnings at $2.84 EPS, Q3 2026 earnings at $2.79 EPS, FY2026 earnings at $10.57 EPS, Q2 2027 earnings at $2.92 EPS, Q3 2027 earnings at $2.90 EPS, Q4 2027 earnings at $3.06 EPS, FY2027 earnings at $11.42 EPS and FY2028 earnings at $12.54 EPS.

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 10th. The medical research company reported $2.42 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.35 by $0.07. The business had revenue of $2.81 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.75 billion. Quest Diagnostics had a net margin of 8.99% and a return on equity of 15.57%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 7.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $2.23 earnings per share. Quest Diagnostics has set its FY 2026 guidance at 9.45-9.650 EPS.

DGX has been the topic of a number of other reports. Jefferies Financial Group increased 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. Robert W. Baird set a $219.00 price target on Quest Diagnostics in a research report on Wednesday, February 11th. Mizuho increased their price objective on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $210.00 to $235.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, February 12th. UBS Group lifted their price target on Quest Diagnostics from $190.00 to $210.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 11th. Finally, Truist Financial lifted their price target on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $205.00 to $220.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 11th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Quest Diagnostics has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $210.29.

Quest Diagnostics Stock Down 1.0%

Shares of DGX opened at $208.13 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.96, a current ratio of 1.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72. Quest Diagnostics has a 52 week low of $157.20 and a 52 week high of $213.50. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $189.98 and its 200-day moving average price is $185.31. The company has a market capitalization of $22.87 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.79, a PEG ratio of 2.72 and a beta of 0.66.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Quest Diagnostics

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 1.0% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 14,392,082 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $2,497,458,000 after buying an additional 140,450 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp boosted its stake in Quest Diagnostics by 3.0% in the fourth quarter. State Street Corp now owns 5,382,547 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $934,033,000 after acquiring an additional 158,617 shares during the last quarter. Boston Partners grew its position in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 32.8% during 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 during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 7.5% during the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,982,415 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $533,563,000 after purchasing an additional 208,261 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised its holdings in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 17.8% in the 4th quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 2,693,568 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $467,415,000 after purchasing an additional 406,658 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 88.06% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Quest Diagnostics

In other news, SVP Michael E. Prevoznik sold 1,111 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $204.83, for a total value of $227,566.13. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 38,371 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,859,531.93. The trade was a 2.81% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Catherine T. Doherty sold 1,433 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $204.83, for a total value of $293,521.39. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 68,402 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $14,010,781.66. This trade represents a 2.05% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold a total of 9,164 shares of company stock valued at $1,872,363 over the last ninety days. Insiders own 8.16% of the company’s stock.

Quest Diagnostics declared that its board has approved a stock repurchase plan on Tuesday, February 10th that permits the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the medical research company to buy up to 4.7% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are typically an indication that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Quest Diagnostics Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 20th. Stockholders of record on Monday, April 6th will be given a dividend of $0.86 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, April 6th. This represents a $3.44 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.7%. This is a boost from Quest Diagnostics’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.80. Quest Diagnostics’s payout ratio is presently 36.57%.

Trending Headlines about Quest Diagnostics

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

• Positive Sentiment: Zacks Research raised multiple near‑ and multi‑year EPS forecasts for Quest, lifting FY2026 to $10.57 (from $10.26), FY2027 to $11.42 (from $11.21) and FY2028 to $12.54, and increasing several quarterly estimates (Q1‑26 $2.37, Q2‑26 $2.84, Q3‑26 $2.79, Q2‑27 $2.92, Q3‑27 $2.90, Q4‑27 $3.06). The revisions signal stronger expected earnings power versus prior guidance and consensus. Zacks Research Estimate Revisions
• Neutral Sentiment: Quest announced “Quest AI Companion,” an AI chat feature (built with Google’s Gemini) to help patients and providers interpret up to five years of lab data. This could improve patient engagement and differentiation over time but is unlikely to materially affect near‑term revenue/earnings. Quest AI Companion Release

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.