Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX) Rating Lowered to Hold at StockNews.com

StockNews.com cut shares of Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research report released on Friday morning.

DGX has been the subject of a number of other research reports. Barclays lifted their price target on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $138.00 to $144.00 and gave the stock an equal weight rating in a research note on Thursday, April 25th. Truist Financial lifted their price objective on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $145.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock a hold rating in a report on Wednesday, April 24th. UBS Group lifted their price objective on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $139.00 to $146.00 and gave the stock a neutral rating in a report on Wednesday, April 24th. Mizuho lifted their price objective on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $150.00 to $155.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a report on Wednesday, April 24th. Finally, Citigroup lifted their price objective on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $135.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock a neutral rating in a report on Wednesday, April 24th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of Hold and an average price target of $146.17.

Quest Diagnostics Stock Down 1.3 %

Shares of NYSE:DGX opened at $135.64 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.97, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $130.52 and a 200 day simple moving average of $131.92. The firm has a market cap of $15.07 billion, a PE ratio of 18.26, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.98 and a beta of 0.88. Quest Diagnostics has a 12-month low of $119.59 and a 12-month high of $145.58.

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 23rd. The medical research company reported $2.04 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.86 by $0.18. The business had revenue of $2.37 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.29 billion. Quest Diagnostics had a net margin of 9.11% and a return on equity of 15.52%. The business’s revenue was up 1.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $2.04 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Quest Diagnostics will post 8.78 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In related news, SVP Michael E. Prevoznik sold 661 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated 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 of the company’s stock, valued at $5,071,584.84. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other Quest Diagnostics news, EVP Catherine T. Doherty sold 821 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $126.14, for a total value of $103,560.94. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 70,800 shares in the company, valued at $8,930,712. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Michael E. Prevoznik sold 661 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $126.14, for a total transaction of $83,378.54. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 40,206 shares in the company, valued at $5,071,584.84. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 16,910 shares of company stock valued at $2,159,602. 0.79% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Quest Diagnostics

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. American Century Companies Inc. raised its holdings in Quest Diagnostics by 12.3% during the 3rd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 3,554,517 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $433,153,000 after buying an additional 388,162 shares during the period. Victory Capital Management Inc. raised its holdings in Quest Diagnostics by 1.8% during the 4th quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 3,476,628 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $479,357,000 after buying an additional 62,114 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its holdings in Quest Diagnostics by 0.7% during the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 2,632,326 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $362,945,000 after buying an additional 18,533 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its holdings in Quest Diagnostics by 36.8% during the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 2,001,347 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $243,884,000 after buying an additional 538,377 shares during the period. Finally, Invesco Ltd. raised its holdings in Quest Diagnostics by 5.4% during the 3rd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 1,798,803 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $219,202,000 after buying an additional 92,542 shares during the period. 88.06% of the stock is currently owned by 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.