Bank of Nova Scotia Sells 3,774 Shares of Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX)

Bank of Nova Scotia lessened its stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX - Free Report) by 22.0% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 13,377 shares of the medical research company's stock after selling 3,774 shares during the quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia's holdings in Quest Diagnostics were worth $2,263,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Brighton Jones LLC bought a new stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics in the 4th quarter worth about $323,000. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 16.1% during the fourth quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC now owns 4,305 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $649,000 after buying an additional 596 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. raised its stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 4.0% in the fourth quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 57,107 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $8,615,000 after acquiring an additional 2,210 shares during the last quarter. World Investment Advisors raised its stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 12.2% in the fourth quarter. World Investment Advisors now owns 2,476 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $374,000 after acquiring an additional 270 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Envestnet Asset Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 10.7% in the 4th quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 283,323 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $42,742,000 after acquiring an additional 27,339 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 88.06% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on DGX shares. Robert W. Baird raised their price target on Quest Diagnostics from $191.00 to $194.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Piper Sandler lifted their price target on Quest Diagnostics from $180.00 to $200.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Monday, April 28th. Barclays upped their price target on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $175.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Truist Financial raised their price objective on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $190.00 to $192.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 23rd. Finally, UBS Group reduced their target price on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $176.00 to $175.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, July 18th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $186.00.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Quest Diagnostics news, SVP Karthik Kuppusamy sold 2,210 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $170.00, for a total transaction of $375,700.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 8,450 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,436,500. This trade represents a 20.73% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, SVP Patrick Plewman sold 5,535 shares of Quest Diagnostics stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $175.00, for a total transaction of $968,625.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 19,219 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,363,325. The trade was a 22.36% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 16,888 shares of company stock valued at $2,882,135. 8.16% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Quest Diagnostics Trading Up 1.6%

DGX traded up $2.82 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $177.09. 616,268 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,187,039. The stock has a market capitalization of $19.80 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.21, a PEG ratio of 2.30 and a beta of 0.46. Quest Diagnostics Incorporated has a one year low of $146.17 and a one year high of $182.38. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $174.20 and its 200 day simple moving average is $170.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71, a quick ratio of 0.99 and a current ratio of 1.09.

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 22nd. The medical research company reported $2.62 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.57 by $0.05. Quest Diagnostics had a net margin of 9.01% and a return on equity of 15.24%. The business had revenue of $2.76 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.73 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.35 EPS. Quest Diagnostics's quarterly revenue was up 15.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts forecast that Quest Diagnostics Incorporated will post 9.7 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Quest Diagnostics Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, July 21st. Investors of record on Monday, July 7th were paid a dividend of $0.80 per share. This represents a $3.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, July 7th. Quest Diagnostics's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 38.32%.

About Quest Diagnostics

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.