Atom Investors LP Purchases New Shares in Quest Diagnostics Incorporated $DGX

Key Points

• Atom Investors LP opened a new position in Quest Diagnostics, buying 24,043 shares worth about $4.17 million in the fourth quarter.
• Quest Diagnostics reported strong quarterly results, with EPS of $2.50 topping estimates and revenue of $2.90 billion, up 9.2% year over year. The company also issued FY 2026 EPS guidance of $10.63 to $10.83.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.86 per share, implying a 1.7% yield, while analysts remain broadly positive with a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average price target of $216.58.

Atom Investors LP purchased a new stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 24,043 shares of the medical research company's stock, valued at approximately $4,172,000.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Crawford Investment Counsel Inc. raised its stake in Quest Diagnostics by 0.4% during the fourth quarter. Crawford Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 496,499 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $86,158,000 after purchasing an additional 2,067 shares in the last quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors raised its stake in Quest Diagnostics by 47.4% during the fourth quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 25,317 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $4,393,000 after purchasing an additional 8,136 shares in the last quarter. &PARTNERS raised its stake in Quest Diagnostics by 10.0% during the fourth quarter. &PARTNERS now owns 111,102 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $19,286,000 after purchasing an additional 10,088 shares in the last quarter. Siemens Fonds Invest GmbH raised its stake in Quest Diagnostics by 71.3% during the fourth quarter. Siemens Fonds Invest GmbH now owns 6,188 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $1,086,000 after purchasing an additional 2,576 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Blair William & Co. IL increased its position in Quest Diagnostics by 5.6% during the fourth quarter. Blair William & Co. IL now owns 103,375 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $17,939,000 after acquiring an additional 5,457 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 88.06% of the company's stock.

Quest Diagnostics Trading Down 0.6%

NYSE DGX opened at $200.98 on Wednesday. The company's 50-day moving average price is $195.12 and its 200-day moving average price is $192.01. The company has a current ratio of 1.18, a quick ratio of 1.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67. The stock has a market cap of $22.25 billion, a PE ratio of 22.21, a PEG ratio of 2.41 and a beta of 0.59. Quest Diagnostics Incorporated has a 12 month low of $164.65 and a 12 month high of $213.50.

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 the consensus estimate of $2.37 by $0.13. Quest Diagnostics had a net margin of 9.07% and a return on equity of 15.60%. The company had revenue of $2.90 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.83 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.94 EPS. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 9.2% on a year-over-year basis. Quest Diagnostics has set its FY 2026 guidance at 10.630-10.830 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that Quest Diagnostics Incorporated will post 10.72 earnings per share for the current year.

Quest Diagnostics Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 22nd. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, July 8th will be issued a dividend of $0.86 per share. This represents a $3.44 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.7%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, July 8th. Quest Diagnostics's dividend payout ratio is presently 38.01%.

Insider Activity

In other Quest Diagnostics news, SVP Karthik Kuppusamy sold 8,147 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $200.00, for a total transaction of $1,629,400.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 13,510 shares in the company, valued at $2,702,000. This represents a 37.62% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CEO J. E. Davis sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $194.14, for a total transaction of $1,941,400.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 132,423 shares in the company, valued at approximately $25,708,601.22. The trade was a 7.02% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. 0.88% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

DGX has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $225.00 price objective on shares of Quest Diagnostics in a research report on Tuesday, April 21st. UBS Group boosted their price objective on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $210.00 to $220.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 22nd. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Quest Diagnostics from a "buy (b)" rating to a "buy (b+)" rating in a report on Tuesday, June 9th. Barclays upped their price target 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, Robert W. Baird upped their price target on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $224.00 to $229.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 22nd. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $216.58.

Quest Diagnostics Profile

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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