AlphaQuest LLC Buys 15,704 Shares of Quest Diagnostics Incorporated $DGX

Key Points

• AlphaQuest LLC increased its Quest Diagnostics stake by 242.8% in the fourth quarter, buying 15,704 additional shares and bringing its total holding to 22,173 shares worth about $3.85 million.
• Several insiders sold shares recently, including SVPs Karthik Kuppusamy and Patrick Plewman, with total insider sales reaching 14,919 shares worth about $3.07 million over the last 90 days.
• Quest Diagnostics reported stronger-than-expected quarterly results, including $2.50 EPS and $2.90 billion in revenue, and analysts now have a consensus rating of Moderate Buy with a target price of $216.58.

AlphaQuest LLC grew its stake in Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX - Free Report) by 242.8% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 22,173 shares of the medical research company's stock after purchasing an additional 15,704 shares during the quarter. AlphaQuest LLC's holdings in Quest Diagnostics were worth $3,848,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the stock. JFS Wealth Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Quest Diagnostics by 114.3% in the 4th quarter. JFS Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 150 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 80 shares during the period. Harbor Investment Advisory LLC grew its position in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 113.7% in the fourth quarter. Harbor Investment Advisory LLC now owns 156 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 83 shares during the last quarter. McIlrath & Eck LLC bought a new position in shares of Quest Diagnostics during the fourth quarter worth approximately $32,000. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd acquired a new stake in Quest Diagnostics during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $33,000. Finally, ORG Partners LLC lifted its holdings in Quest Diagnostics by 66.1% during the 4th quarter. ORG Partners LLC now owns 211 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $37,000 after purchasing an additional 84 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 88.06% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Quest Diagnostics

In other Quest Diagnostics news, SVP Karthik Kuppusamy sold 2,628 shares of Quest Diagnostics stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $204.86, for a total transaction of $538,372.08. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 13,441 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,753,523.26. The trade was a 16.35% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, SVP Patrick Plewman sold 2,855 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $206.21, for a total value of $588,729.55. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president owned 15,198 shares in the company, valued at $3,133,979.58. This trade represents a 15.81% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold 14,919 shares of company stock worth $3,072,899 in the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.88% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms recently commented on DGX. Evercore set a $225.00 price target on shares of Quest Diagnostics in a research note on Tuesday, April 21st. Truist Financial boosted their price objective on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $220.00 to $225.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 22nd. Jefferies Financial Group restated a "buy" rating and set a $225.00 target price on shares of Quest Diagnostics in a research report on Tuesday, April 21st. Barclays raised their target price on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $225.00 to $230.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 22nd. Finally, Weiss Ratings cut Quest Diagnostics from a "buy (b+)" rating to a "buy (b)" rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 19th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $216.58.

Quest Diagnostics Trading Up 0.0%

NYSE DGX opened at $195.23 on Tuesday. The company has a market cap of $21.61 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.57, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.33 and a beta of 0.60. Quest Diagnostics Incorporated has a twelve month low of $164.65 and a twelve month 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 business's fifty day moving average is $194.74 and its 200 day moving average is $190.66.

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

Quest Diagnostics declared that its board has approved a share buyback program on Tuesday, February 10th that authorizes the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the medical research company to purchase up to 4.7% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are typically an indication that the company's board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Quest Diagnostics Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 22nd. Investors of record on Wednesday, July 8th will be issued a $0.86 dividend. This represents a $3.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.8%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, July 8th. Quest Diagnostics's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 38.01%.

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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