Capital Fund Management S.A. Acquires Shares of 10,329 Quest Diagnostics Incorporated $DGX

Key Points

• Capital Fund Management S.A. has invested approximately $1.75 million in Quest Diagnostics by acquiring 10,329 shares during the first quarter of the year.
• Quest Diagnostics reported a 15.2% year-over-year revenue increase to $2.76 billion and earnings per share of $2.62, surpassing estimates by $0.05.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.80 per share, resulting in an annualized yield of 1.8% for shareholders.

Capital Fund Management S.A. acquired a new stake in Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 10,329 shares of the medical research company's stock, valued at approximately $1,748,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Boston Partners purchased a new stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics in the 1st quarter valued at $388,724,000. Northern Trust Corp raised its holdings in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 18.7% in the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 1,196,429 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $180,493,000 after buying an additional 188,402 shares during the period. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC raised its holdings in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 14.7% in the 4th quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 1,002,379 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $151,219,000 after buying an additional 128,285 shares during the period. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale grew its stake in Quest Diagnostics by 2.3% during the 1st quarter. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale now owns 765,938 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $127,131,000 after purchasing an additional 17,258 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its stake in Quest Diagnostics by 0.6% during the 1st quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 740,838 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $125,350,000 after purchasing an additional 4,405 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 88.06% of the company's stock.

Quest Diagnostics Stock Performance

Shares of Quest Diagnostics stock traded up $2.61 on Friday, hitting $181.81. The stock had a trading volume of 731,481 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,152,421. Quest Diagnostics Incorporated has a 52-week low of $146.17 and a 52-week high of $185.62. The company has a current ratio of 1.09, a quick ratio of 0.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71. The stock has a market cap of $20.33 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.77, a P/E/G ratio of 2.39 and a beta of 0.46. The company's 50 day moving average price is $175.04 and its 200 day moving average price is $172.87.

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results 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 business had revenue of $2.76 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.73 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $2.35 EPS. The business'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. On average, research analysts anticipate that Quest Diagnostics Incorporated will post 9.7 EPS for the current year.

Quest Diagnostics Dividend Announcement

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts recently commented on DGX shares. Truist Financial boosted their target price on Quest Diagnostics from $190.00 to $192.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 23rd. Evercore ISI set a $185.00 target price on Quest Diagnostics in a research note on Wednesday, July 23rd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their target price on Quest Diagnostics from $160.00 to $178.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 23rd. Baird R W cut Quest Diagnostics from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday. Finally, Robert W. Baird reissued a "neutral" rating and set a $194.00 target price on shares of Quest Diagnostics in a research note on Monday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have given a Buy rating and ten have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $186.00.

Insider Activity

In other news, SVP Patrick Plewman sold 1,975 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $185.00, for a total value of $365,375.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 15,269 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,824,765. The trade was a 11.45% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, SVP Karthik Kuppusamy sold 2,210 shares of the company'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 value of $375,700.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 8,450 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,436,500. This represents a 20.73% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 24,496 shares of company stock valued at $4,278,787 over the last three months. Company insiders own 8.16% of the company's stock.

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.