Bank OZK Makes New $2.07 Million Investment in Quest Diagnostics Incorporated $DGX

Key Points

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Bank OZK bought a new position in shares of Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor bought 12,231 shares of the medical research company's stock, valued at approximately $2,069,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of DGX. Boston Partners acquired a new stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics during the first quarter worth $388,724,000. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD raised its holdings in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 42.5% during the fourth quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 5,490,278 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $828,265,000 after purchasing an additional 1,637,525 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its holdings in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 23,296.2% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 444,996 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $75,293,000 after purchasing an additional 443,094 shares during the period. Nuveen LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics during the first quarter worth $55,587,000. Finally, Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH acquired a new stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics during the fourth quarter worth $33,698,000. 88.06% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In other news, SVP Patrick Plewman sold 5,535 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated 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 owned 19,219 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,363,325. This trade represents a 22.36% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, SVP Karthik Kuppusamy sold 8,269 shares of the firm's 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 approximately $1,784,484. This trade represents a 43.68% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 16,014 shares of company stock valued at $2,728,556. Insiders own 8.16% of the company's stock.

Quest Diagnostics Stock Performance

Shares of DGX opened at $179.19 on Tuesday. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $174.74 and a 200 day moving average price of $172.02. The firm has a market capitalization of $20.04 billion, a PE ratio of 21.46, a P/E/G ratio of 2.39 and a beta of 0.46. The company has a quick ratio of 0.99, a current ratio of 1.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71. Quest Diagnostics Incorporated has a 52-week low of $146.17 and a 52-week high of $182.38.

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, July 22nd. The medical research company reported $2.62 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.57 by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $2.76 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.73 billion. Quest Diagnostics had a net margin of 9.01% and a return on equity of 15.24%. Quest Diagnostics's 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 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate 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 will be paid on Monday, October 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, October 3rd will be given a dividend of $0.80 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 3rd. This represents a $3.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.8%. Quest Diagnostics's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 38.32%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

DGX has been the topic of a number of research reports. William Blair reissued an "outperform" rating on shares of Quest Diagnostics in a report on Wednesday, July 23rd. Barclays increased their price objective on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $175.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $180.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, May 6th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their price objective on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $160.00 to $178.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 23rd. Finally, Robert W. Baird increased their price objective on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $191.00 to $194.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Quest Diagnostics presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $186.00.

Quest Diagnostics Company 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.

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