173,262 Shares in Quest Diagnostics Incorporated $DGX Bought by Conning Inc.

Key Points

• Conning Inc. bought a new stake in Quest Diagnostics, purchasing 173,262 shares valued at about $30.1 million and ending with roughly 0.16% ownership.
• Several other institutional investors also added to their positions, and 88.06% of Quest Diagnostics stock is now held by institutions, underscoring strong professional ownership interest.
• Quest Diagnostics posted a stronger-than-expected quarterly report, with EPS of $2.50 and revenue of $2.90 billion, while analysts generally remain constructive with a Moderate Buy consensus and an average target price of $216.58.

Conning Inc. purchased a new stake in Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor purchased 173,262 shares of the medical research company's stock, valued at approximately $30,066,000. Conning Inc. owned approximately 0.16% of Quest Diagnostics at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in DGX. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in Quest Diagnostics by 1.0% during 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 acquiring an additional 140,450 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp raised its stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 0.8% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 5,223,930 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $995,577,000 after purchasing an additional 38,931 shares in the last quarter. Boston Partners lifted its position in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 32.8% during the third quarter. Boston Partners now owns 4,036,881 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $767,978,000 after purchasing an additional 997,033 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its position in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 0.3% during the third quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,907,510 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $363,509,000 after purchasing an additional 6,155 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Invesco Ltd. grew its stake in Quest Diagnostics by 1.8% in the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 1,688,769 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $321,846,000 after purchasing an additional 30,418 shares in the last quarter. 88.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Quest Diagnostics news, SVP Patrick Plewman sold 2,855 shares of Quest Diagnostics stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $206.21, for a total transaction of $588,729.55. Following the sale, the senior vice president owned 15,198 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,133,979.58. The trade was a 15.81% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, SVP Michael E. Prevoznik sold 3,878 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $206.21, for a total value of $799,682.38. Following the transaction, the senior vice president owned 37,557 shares of the company's stock, valued at $7,744,628.97. This trade represents a 9.36% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold 18,421 shares of company stock valued at $3,790,214 in the last quarter. 0.88% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have issued reports on the company. Mizuho upped their price objective on Quest Diagnostics from $210.00 to $235.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 12th. Barclays lifted their target price on Quest Diagnostics from $225.00 to $230.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 22nd. UBS Group upped their price target on Quest Diagnostics from $210.00 to $220.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 22nd. Wall Street Zen upgraded Quest Diagnostics from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, April 25th. Finally, Truist Financial lifted their price objective on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $220.00 to $225.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 22nd. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $216.58.

Key Quest Diagnostics News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Zacks Research raised its FY2026 EPS estimate for Quest Diagnostics to $10.66 from $10.57 and lifted FY2027 EPS to $11.50 from $11.42, suggesting improved expectations for near- and medium-term profitability.
• Positive Sentiment: Zacks Research also increased its Q4 2026 EPS forecast to $2.60 from $2.58 and bumped its Q3 2027 estimate to $2.97 from $2.90, indicating analysts see steady earnings growth ahead.
• Neutral Sentiment: A separate Barron’s screen included Quest Diagnostics among stocks “coming back to life” after a rough patch, which is more of a sentiment/data screen than a direct company-specific catalyst. Barron's article
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst coverage remains constructive overall, with the company carrying an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy,” reinforcing a generally favorable long-term outlook. American Banking News article
• Negative Sentiment: Not all estimate revisions were positive: Zacks trimmed its FY2028 EPS outlook slightly to $12.50 from $12.54 and cut its Q1 2028 estimate to $2.89 from $3.01, which may temper enthusiasm at the long end of the forecast.

Quest Diagnostics Trading Down 1.6%

Quest Diagnostics stock opened at $187.80 on Friday. Quest Diagnostics Incorporated has a 52-week low of $164.65 and a 52-week high of $213.50. The company has a quick ratio of 1.08, a current ratio of 1.18 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67. The firm has a market capitalization of $20.79 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.75, a PEG ratio of 2.27 and a beta of 0.60. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $196.15 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $189.94.

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 21st. The medical research company reported $2.50 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.37 by $0.13. The company had revenue of $2.90 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.83 billion. Quest Diagnostics had a net margin of 9.07% and a return on equity of 15.60%. Quest Diagnostics's revenue was up 9.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.94 earnings per share. Quest Diagnostics has set its FY 2026 guidance at 10.630-10.830 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that Quest Diagnostics Incorporated will post 10.72 earnings per share for the current year.

Quest Diagnostics announced that its board has approved a share repurchase program on Tuesday, February 10th that authorizes the company to buyback $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the medical research company to repurchase up to 4.7% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are often a sign that the company's management believes its shares are undervalued.

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.

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