Aberdeen Group plc Purchases 15,223 Shares of Quest Diagnostics Incorporated $DGX

Key Points

• Aberdeen Group plc increased its stake in Quest Diagnostics by 17.1%, acquiring an additional 15,223 shares, bringing its total ownership to 104,307 shares valued at approximately $18.74 million.
• Insider trading activity includes significant sales by senior vice president Karthik Kuppusamy and Patrick Plewman, who sold 8,269 and 5,535 shares respectively, indicating a decrease in their positions.
• Quest Diagnostics reported $2.62 EPS for the latest quarter, exceeding analyst estimates, and announced a quarterly dividend of $0.80 per share, with an ex-dividend date set for October 3rd.

Aberdeen Group plc raised its position in Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX - Free Report) by 17.1% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 104,307 shares of the medical research company's stock after purchasing an additional 15,223 shares during the quarter. Aberdeen Group plc owned 0.09% of Quest Diagnostics worth $18,737,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of DGX. Boston Partners bought a new position in Quest Diagnostics in the first quarter valued at about $388,724,000. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD raised its position in Quest Diagnostics by 9.0% in the first quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 5,984,238 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $1,012,534,000 after purchasing an additional 493,960 shares during the last quarter. Nuveen LLC bought a new position in Quest Diagnostics in the first quarter valued at about $55,587,000. Coho Partners Ltd. acquired a new stake in Quest Diagnostics in the first quarter valued at $30,839,000. Finally, Cookson Peirce & Co. Inc. acquired a new stake in Quest Diagnostics in the first quarter valued at $29,213,000. 88.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Quest Diagnostics

In other news, SVP Karthik Kuppusamy sold 8,269 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $167.40, for a total transaction of $1,384,230.60. Following the transaction, the senior vice president owned 10,660 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,784,484. This represents a 43.68% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, SVP Patrick Plewman sold 5,535 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $175.00, for a total transaction of $968,625.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 19,219 shares in the company, valued at $3,363,325. This trade represents a 22.36% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 53,186 shares of company stock valued at $9,647,471 in the last 90 days. 8.16% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

DGX has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Robert W. Baird restated a "neutral" rating and issued a $194.00 price objective on shares of Quest Diagnostics in a report on Monday, August 25th. UBS Group decreased their price objective on Quest Diagnostics from $176.00 to $175.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Friday, July 18th. Weiss Ratings restated a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Quest Diagnostics in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Evercore ISI increased their price objective on Quest Diagnostics from $185.00 to $190.00 and gave the company an "in-line" rating in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Finally, Baird R W downgraded Quest Diagnostics from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, August 25th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have issued a Buy rating and ten have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $186.81.

Quest Diagnostics Stock Performance

Shares of DGX opened at $185.24 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.09, a quick ratio of 0.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71. The stock has a market capitalization of $20.71 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.18, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.43 and a beta of 0.56. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $181.65 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $175.79. Quest Diagnostics Incorporated has a 12 month low of $146.91 and a 12 month high of $191.49.

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 22nd. The medical research company reported $2.62 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.57 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $2.76 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.73 billion. Quest Diagnostics had a net margin of 9.01% and a return on equity of 15.24%. The business's quarterly revenue was up 15.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $2.35 earnings per share. Quest Diagnostics has set its FY 2025 guidance at 9.630-9.830 EPS. As a group, analysts predict that Quest Diagnostics Incorporated will post 9.7 EPS for the current year.

Quest Diagnostics Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, October 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, October 3rd will be given a dividend of $0.80 per share. This represents a $3.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 3rd. Quest Diagnostics's dividend payout ratio is 38.32%.

Quest Diagnostics Profile

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.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding DGX? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX - Free Report).

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.