44,680 Quest Diagnostics Incorporated $DGX Shares Bought by Calamos Advisors LLC

Key Points

• Calamos Advisors more than doubled its Quest Diagnostics stake in the third quarter, adding 44,680 shares to hold 88,732 shares valued at about $20.7 million. Institutional investors collectively owned 88.06% of the company.
• Quest Diagnostics reported quarterly earnings of $3.00 per share, beating the $2.87 consensus estimate, while revenue rose 10% year over year to $3.10 billion.
• Analysts’ consensus rating was “Moderate Buy”, with an average price target of $248.70. Company insiders sold 55,985 shares over the prior 90 days.

Calamos Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX - Free Report) by 101.4% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 88,732 shares of the medical research company's stock after acquiring an additional 44,680 shares during the period. Calamos Advisors LLC owned approximately 0.08% of Quest Diagnostics worth $20,681,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of DGX. Kestra Advisory Services LLC grew its holdings in Quest Diagnostics by 4.4% during the 3rd quarter. Kestra Advisory Services LLC now owns 18,820 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $4,386,000 after purchasing an additional 793 shares in the last quarter. Collaborative Fund Advisors LLC increased its stake in Quest Diagnostics by 33.0% during the 3rd quarter. Collaborative Fund Advisors LLC now owns 2,658 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $620,000 after buying an additional 660 shares during the period. Chicago Partners Investment Group LLC increased its stake in Quest Diagnostics by 19.8% during the 3rd quarter. Chicago Partners Investment Group LLC now owns 4,211 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $1,019,000 after buying an additional 697 shares during the period. Caldwell Trust Co lifted its holdings in Quest Diagnostics by 12.7% in the 3rd quarter. Caldwell Trust Co now owns 14,837 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $3,458,000 after buying an additional 1,672 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Rakuten Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in Quest Diagnostics by 9.8% in the 3rd quarter. Rakuten Investment Management Inc. now owns 19,831 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $4,600,000 after buying an additional 1,773 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 88.06% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Truist Financial raised their target price on Quest Diagnostics from $250.00 to $260.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, September 21st. UBS Group reissued a "neutral" rating and issued a $250.00 price target on shares of Quest Diagnostics in a report on Monday, October 19th. Wall Street Zen raised Quest Diagnostics from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 28th. Robert W. Baird set a $262.00 price objective on Quest Diagnostics in a research note on Friday, October 23rd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on Quest Diagnostics from $220.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 28th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have given a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $248.70.

Insider Transactions at Quest Diagnostics

In other news, Director Gary M. Pfeiffer sold 1,203 shares of Quest Diagnostics stock in a transaction dated Monday, October 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $243.00, for a total value of $292,329.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 29,802 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $7,241,886. The trade was a 3.88% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CEO J. E. Davis sold 10,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $242.72, for a total transaction of $2,427,200.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 122,423 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $29,714,510.56. This represents a 7.55% 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. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 55,985 shares of company stock valued at $13,715,017. Company insiders own 0.88% of the company's stock.

Quest Diagnostics Trading Up 0.2%

NYSE DGX opened at $255.36 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $28.09 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.43, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.29 and a beta of 0.55. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70, a current ratio of 1.70 and a quick ratio of 1.58. Quest Diagnostics Incorporated has a 12 month low of $171.18 and a 12 month high of $259.00. The company's fifty day moving average price is $239.34 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $213.68.

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, October 22nd. The medical research company reported $3.00 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.87 by $0.13. The company had revenue of $3.10 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.05 billion. Quest Diagnostics had a net margin of 9.53% and a return on equity of 16.21%. The company's revenue was up 10.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $2.60 EPS. As a group, research analysts predict that Quest Diagnostics Incorporated will post 11.29 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Quest Diagnostics Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, October 21st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, October 6th were issued a dividend of $0.86 per share. This represents a $3.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, October 6th. Quest Diagnostics's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 34.26%.

Quest Diagnostics Profile

Quest Diagnostics NYSE: DGX is a provider of diagnostic information services, conducting laboratory tests that help physicians and other health care professionals diagnose, monitor and manage medical conditions. Its services include routine blood and other clinical laboratory testing, anatomic pathology, and specialized molecular and genetic testing.

The company serves patients, physicians, hospitals, health plans, employers and government organizations. In addition to testing performed through its laboratories and patient service centers, Quest offers services such as workplace drug testing and diagnostic support for clinical research.

Quest Diagnostics traces its roots to a clinical laboratory established in 1967 and became an independent company in 1996 after being spun off from Corning.

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