Comerica Bank Sells 15,982 Shares of Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX)

Comerica Bank lowered its holdings in shares of Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX - Free Report) by 30.1% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 37,058 shares of the medical research company's stock after selling 15,982 shares during the period. Comerica Bank's holdings in Quest Diagnostics were worth $5,590,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in DGX. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD increased its holdings in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 42.5% during the fourth quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 5,490,278 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $828,265,000 after buying an additional 1,637,525 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 2.8% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,690,021 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $404,764,000 after purchasing an additional 73,368 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its position in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 60.4% in the 4th quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 2,433,913 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $367,180,000 after buying an additional 916,898 shares during the last quarter. Grantham Mayo Van Otterloo & Co. LLC raised its position in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 1.2% during the fourth quarter. Grantham Mayo Van Otterloo & Co. LLC now owns 2,268,990 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $342,300,000 after acquiring an additional 26,214 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Quest Diagnostics in the fourth quarter worth approximately $191,823,000. Institutional investors own 88.06% of the company's stock.

Quest Diagnostics Stock Performance

Shares of Quest Diagnostics stock traded down $0.57 on Thursday, reaching $176.00. 1,504,698 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 970,438. The company has a 50 day moving average of $169.68 and a 200 day moving average of $162.56. Quest Diagnostics Incorporated has a 52 week low of $135.47 and a 52 week high of $179.32. The firm has a market capitalization of $19.65 billion, a PE ratio of 22.89, a PEG ratio of 2.16 and a beta of 0.52. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.82, a current ratio of 1.10 and a quick ratio of 1.02.

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, April 22nd. The medical research company reported $2.21 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.15 by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $2.65 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.63 billion. Quest Diagnostics had a net margin of 8.80% and a return on equity of 15.07%. Equities analysts forecast that Quest Diagnostics Incorporated will post 9.7 earnings per share for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on DGX shares. Mizuho boosted their target price on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $178.00 to $189.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 9th. Redburn Atlantic began coverage on Quest Diagnostics in a research note on Wednesday, April 2nd. They issued a "buy" rating and a $195.00 target price for the company. UBS Group raised their price objective on Quest Diagnostics from $166.00 to $170.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Barclays lifted their price target on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $175.00 to $185.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Finally, Truist Financial lifted their price objective on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $182.00 to $190.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Quest Diagnostics currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $185.73.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, SVP Michael E. Prevoznik sold 528 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $172.61, for a total value of $91,138.08. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 39,031 shares of the company's stock, valued at $6,737,140.91. This trade represents a 1.33 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO J. E. Davis sold 39,191 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $168.46, for a total transaction of $6,602,115.86. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 127,623 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $21,499,370.58. This represents a 23.49 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 54,250 shares of company stock valued at $9,188,295. Corporate insiders own 8.16% of the company's stock.

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.