StockNews.com Lowers Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX) to Hold

StockNews.com lowered shares of Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research note issued to investors on Wednesday morning.

A number of other analysts have also issued reports on DGX. Barclays began coverage on Quest Diagnostics in a report on Wednesday, January 3rd. They issued an equal weight rating and a $145.00 price target for the company. SVB Leerink began coverage on Quest Diagnostics in a report on Monday, February 26th. They issued a market perform rating and a $135.00 price target for the company. Leerink Partnrs reiterated a market perform rating on shares of Quest Diagnostics in a report on Monday, February 26th. TheStreet downgraded shares of Quest Diagnostics from a b- rating to a c rating in a research note on Monday, February 5th. Finally, Truist Financial reissued a hold rating and issued a $145.00 price objective on shares of Quest Diagnostics in a research note on Wednesday, March 20th. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of Hold and an average target price of $144.18.

Quest Diagnostics Stock Up 2.0 %

Shares of NYSE:DGX opened at $128.44 on Wednesday. Quest Diagnostics has a 1 year low of $119.59 and a 1 year high of $148.62. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $128.32 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $130.77. The firm has a market capitalization of $14.26 billion, a PE ratio of 17.15, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.74 and a beta of 0.91. 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 (NYSE:DGX) last announced 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. The business had revenue of $2.29 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.25 billion. Quest Diagnostics had a return on equity of 15.79% and a net margin of 9.23%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.98 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts predict that Quest Diagnostics will post 8.75 EPS for the current year.

Quest Diagnostics Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 22nd. Stockholders of record on Monday, April 8th will be given a dividend of $0.75 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 5th. This is an increase from Quest Diagnostics’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.71. This represents a $3.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.34%. Quest Diagnostics’s dividend payout ratio is presently 37.92%.

Insider Transactions at Quest Diagnostics

In related news, SVP Michael E. Prevoznik sold 661 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $126.14, for a total value of $83,378.54. Following the transaction, 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 SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In other Quest Diagnostics news, SVP Michael E. Prevoznik sold 661 shares of the company’s 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 sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 40,206 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,071,584.84. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Vicky B. Gregg sold 2,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $126.64, for a total transaction of $316,600.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 16,329 shares in the company, valued at $2,067,904.56. 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

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. NBC Securities Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics during the 3rd quarter worth about $25,000. Altshuler Shaham Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics during the 4th quarter worth about $26,000. VisionPoint Advisory Group LLC boosted its stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 100.0% during the 3rd quarter. VisionPoint Advisory Group LLC now owns 218 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 109 shares in the last quarter. Chilton Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics during the 1st quarter worth about $28,000. Finally, BKM Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics during the 4th quarter worth about $29,000. 88.06% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.