Paradiem LLC Buys New Holdings in Quest Diagnostics Incorporated $DGX

Paradiem LLC purchased a new position in Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 78,670 shares of the medical research company’s stock, valued at approximately $13,652,000. Quest Diagnostics accounts for approximately 3.3% of Paradiem LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 13th biggest holding. Paradiem LLC owned approximately 0.07% of Quest Diagnostics as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Perigon Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 4.5% during the third quarter. Perigon Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,275 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $243,000 after acquiring an additional 55 shares during the last quarter. Independent Advisor Alliance increased its holdings in Quest Diagnostics by 1.4% in the 3rd quarter. Independent Advisor Alliance now owns 4,232 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $807,000 after acquiring an additional 59 shares during the last quarter. True North Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Quest Diagnostics by 4.1% in the 3rd quarter. True North Advisors LLC now owns 1,554 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $296,000 after acquiring an additional 61 shares during the last quarter. Ossiam lifted its stake in Quest Diagnostics by 6.1% in the 3rd quarter. Ossiam now owns 1,059 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $202,000 after purchasing an additional 61 shares in the last quarter. Finally, OLD Second National Bank of Aurora boosted its holdings in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 14.9% during the 3rd quarter. OLD Second National Bank of Aurora now owns 517 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $99,000 after purchasing an additional 67 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 88.06% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms recently commented on DGX. Mizuho boosted their target price on Quest Diagnostics from $210.00 to $235.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 12th. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price target on Quest Diagnostics from $215.00 to $220.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 10th. Truist Financial lifted their price objective on Quest Diagnostics from $205.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 11th. Evercore set a $220.00 price objective on Quest Diagnostics in a report on Wednesday, February 11th. Finally, Citigroup upped their price target on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $190.00 to $215.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 10th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Quest Diagnostics presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $210.29.

Quest Diagnostics Price Performance

Shares of Quest Diagnostics stock opened at $194.13 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $21.33 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.19, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.52 and a beta of 0.66. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72, a quick ratio of 0.96 and a current ratio of 1.04. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $195.84 and a 200-day moving average price of $186.85. Quest Diagnostics Incorporated has a one year low of $157.20 and a one year high of $213.50.

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX) last released its quarterly earnings results 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 company had revenue of $2.81 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates 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% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $2.23 EPS. Quest Diagnostics has set its FY 2026 guidance at 9.45-9.650 EPS. Equities analysts expect that Quest Diagnostics Incorporated will post 9.7 EPS for the current year.

Quest Diagnostics Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 20th. Investors of record on Monday, April 6th will be paid a dividend of $0.86 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, April 6th. This represents a $3.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.8%. This is a boost from Quest Diagnostics’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.80. Quest Diagnostics’s dividend payout ratio is presently 36.57%.

Quest Diagnostics declared that its board has initiated a share buyback plan on Tuesday, February 10th that allows the company to buyback $1.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the medical research company to buy up to 4.7% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are generally an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Activity

In other Quest Diagnostics news, SVP Karthik Kuppusamy sold 2,628 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $204.86, for a total value of $538,372.08. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president owned 13,441 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,753,523.26. This trade represents a 16.35% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, SVP Patrick Plewman sold 5,662 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $204.00, for a total value of $1,155,048.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president owned 15,381 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,137,724. This trade represents a 26.91% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 24,083 shares of company stock valued at $4,945,262. 8.16% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.