17,683 Shares of Quest Diagnostics Incorporated $DGX Bought by CWA Asset Management Group LLC

Key Points

• CWA Asset Management Group acquired 17,683 Quest Diagnostics shares worth approximately $4.1 million, while institutional investors and hedge funds collectively own 88.06% of the company.
• Analysts maintain a generally favorable outlook, with a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $240.58; Quest shares recently opened at $236.93.
• Quest Diagnostics exceeded quarterly earnings and revenue estimates, reporting $3.12 EPS and $3.04 billion in revenue, while declaring a quarterly dividend of $0.86 per share, representing a 1.5% yield.

CWA Asset Management Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX - Free Report) during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 17,683 shares of the medical research company's stock, valued at approximately $4,121,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. BlackRock Inc. bought a new position in Quest Diagnostics during the 2nd quarter worth about $1,965,923,000. EdgePoint Investment Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 35.1% in the 1st quarter. EdgePoint Investment Group Inc. now owns 2,243,869 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $439,753,000 after purchasing an additional 582,797 shares during the period. Bank of America Corp DE acquired a new stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics in the 2nd quarter valued at about $410,151,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 0.9% in the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,949,535 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $382,085,000 after purchasing an additional 17,987 shares during the period. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 11.3% in the second quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 942,407 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $199,743,000 after purchasing an additional 95,804 shares in the last quarter. 88.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on DGX shares. Truist Financial upped their price objective on Quest Diagnostics from $250.00 to $260.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, September 21st. Robert W. Baird increased their price objective on Quest Diagnostics from $236.00 to $255.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, July 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on Quest Diagnostics from $220.00 to $250.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 28th. UBS Group restated a "neutral" rating and issued a $250.00 target price on shares of Quest Diagnostics in a research note on Monday. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded Quest Diagnostics from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 28th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have assigned a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $240.58.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, SVP Mark E. Delaney sold 1,600 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $235.18, for a total value of $376,288.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president owned 10,335 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,430,585.30. This represents a 13.41% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, SVP Michael E. Prevoznik sold 22,677 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $243.11, for a total value of $5,513,005.47. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 37,557 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $9,130,482.27. The trade was a 37.65% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold 34,277 shares of company stock valued at $8,316,493 in the last 90 days. 0.88% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Quest Diagnostics Price Performance

Shares of NYSE DGX opened at $236.93 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 1.59 and a quick ratio of 1.46. The business has a 50-day moving average of $237.34 and a 200-day moving average of $216.03. The stock has a market capitalization of $26.15 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.08, a PEG ratio of 2.12 and a beta of 0.54. Quest Diagnostics Incorporated has a fifty-two week low of $171.18 and a fifty-two week high of $248.84.

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, July 23rd. The medical research company reported $3.12 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.82 by $0.30. Quest Diagnostics had a return on equity of 16.01% and a net margin of 9.18%. The business had revenue of $3.04 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.97 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $2.62 earnings per share. Quest Diagnostics's revenue was up 10.2% on a year-over-year basis. Quest Diagnostics has set its FY 2026 guidance at 11.050-11.250 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Quest Diagnostics Incorporated will post 11.15 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Quest Diagnostics Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 21st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, October 6th will be given a dividend of $0.86 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, October 6th. This represents a $3.44 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.5%. Quest Diagnostics's payout ratio is 36.52%.

About Quest Diagnostics

Quest Diagnostics Incorporated NYSE: DGX is a provider of diagnostic information services. The company performs laboratory testing that helps physicians, hospitals and other healthcare providers diagnose, treat and monitor diseases and health conditions. Its services include routine blood and other specimen testing, pathology, molecular and genetic testing, and specialized diagnostic services.

Quest Diagnostics serves a broad range of customers, including hospitals, physician practices, health plans, employers, government agencies and individual consumers.

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