Quest Diagnostics Incorporated $DGX Shares Purchased by Candriam S.C.A.

Key Points

• Candriam S.C.A. increased its stake in Quest Diagnostics by 66.2%, now owning 278,656 shares valued at approximately $47.1 million after purchasing an additional 110,946 shares.
• Insider transactions include sales by senior vice presidents, with a total of 17,989 shares worth about $3.08 million sold in the last 90 days.
• Quest Diagnostics reported a quarterly EPS of $2.62, exceeding estimates, and announced a quarterly dividend of $0.80 slated for payment on October 20th.

Candriam S.C.A. lifted its position in Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX - Free Report) by 66.2% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 278,656 shares of the medical research company's stock after purchasing an additional 110,946 shares during the quarter. Candriam S.C.A. owned approximately 0.25% of Quest Diagnostics worth $47,149,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC raised its stake in Quest Diagnostics by 57.8% during the 1st quarter. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC now owns 183 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 67 shares during the last quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. raised its stake in Quest Diagnostics by 76.6% during the 1st quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 189 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $32,000 after acquiring an additional 82 shares during the last quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in Quest Diagnostics by 157.3% during the 1st quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC now owns 193 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 118 shares during the last quarter. NBC Securities Inc. purchased a new stake in Quest Diagnostics during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Finally, Continuum Advisory LLC raised its stake in Quest Diagnostics by 11,100.0% during the 1st quarter. Continuum Advisory LLC now owns 224 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $38,000 after acquiring an additional 222 shares during the last quarter. 88.06% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have commented on DGX. William Blair reaffirmed an "outperform" rating on shares of Quest Diagnostics in a research note on Wednesday, July 23rd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their price objective on Quest Diagnostics from $160.00 to $178.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 23rd. Wall Street Zen downgraded Quest Diagnostics from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Sunday, August 10th. UBS Group cut their target price on Quest Diagnostics from $176.00 to $175.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, July 18th. Finally, Evercore ISI set a $185.00 target price on Quest Diagnostics in a research note on Wednesday, July 23rd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have given a Buy rating and nine have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $186.00.

Quest Diagnostics Price Performance

NYSE DGX traded down $1.27 during mid-day trading on Monday, hitting $178.96. The stock had a trading volume of 296,892 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,159,928. Quest Diagnostics Incorporated has a 52-week low of $146.17 and a 52-week high of $185.62. The company has a market cap of $20.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.44, a P/E/G ratio of 2.39 and a beta of 0.46. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $175.09 and a 200 day simple moving average of $172.56. 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 (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, beating the consensus estimate of $2.57 by $0.05. Quest Diagnostics had a return on equity of 15.24% and a net margin of 9.01%.The firm had revenue of $2.76 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.73 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $2.35 EPS. Quest Diagnostics's quarterly revenue was up 15.2% on a year-over-year basis. Quest Diagnostics has set its FY 2025 guidance at 9.630-9.830 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that Quest Diagnostics Incorporated will post 9.7 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Quest Diagnostics Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, October 20th. Investors of record on Friday, October 3rd will be paid a $0.80 dividend. This represents a $3.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 3rd. Quest Diagnostics's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 38.32%.

Insider Activity at Quest Diagnostics

In related news, SVP Patrick Plewman sold 5,535 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $175.00, for a total value of $968,625.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 19,219 shares of the company's stock, valued at $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 available at this hyperlink. Also, SVP Karthik Kuppusamy sold 8,269 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $167.40, for a total value of $1,384,230.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 10,660 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,784,484. The trade was a 43.68% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 22,521 shares of company stock valued at $3,913,412 over the last ninety days. 8.16% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.