Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. Raises Position in Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX)

Key Points

• Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in Quest Diagnostics by 0.6%, owning approximately 740,838 shares valued at $125.35 million.
• A significant number of hedge funds adjusted their positions regarding Quest Diagnostics, with some making large purchases or increasing their holdings substantially in the fourth quarter.
• Quest Diagnostics recently reported an earnings per share (EPS) of $2.62 for the last quarter, exceeding analysts' expectations and marking a year-over-year revenue increase of 15.2%.

Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its position in Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX - Free Report) by 0.6% during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 740,838 shares of the medical research company's stock after acquiring an additional 4,405 shares during the quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. owned approximately 0.66% of Quest Diagnostics worth $125,350,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of DGX. Brighton Jones LLC purchased a new position in shares of Quest Diagnostics in the fourth quarter valued at about $323,000. Federated Hermes Inc. increased its position in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 232.3% in the fourth quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 1,233 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $186,000 after acquiring an additional 862 shares during the period. Sterling Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 55.4% in the fourth quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 6,579 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $993,000 after acquiring an additional 2,346 shares during the period. Townsquare Capital LLC increased its position in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 59.7% in the fourth quarter. Townsquare Capital LLC now owns 2,649 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $400,000 after acquiring an additional 990 shares during the period. Finally, Sagespring Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Quest Diagnostics in the fourth quarter valued at about $242,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 88.06% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, SVP Karthik Kuppusamy sold 8,269 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 in the company, valued at $1,784,484. This represents a 43.68% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, SVP Patrick Plewman sold 5,535 shares of the 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 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 disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 16,014 shares of company stock worth $2,728,556. 8.16% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on DGX shares. UBS Group decreased their price objective 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. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $180.00 to $190.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 6th. Robert W. Baird boosted their price target on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $191.00 to $194.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Quest Diagnostics from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Sunday. Finally, Evercore ISI set a $185.00 price target on shares of Quest Diagnostics in a research report on Wednesday, July 23rd. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Quest Diagnostics has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $186.00.

Quest Diagnostics Trading Up 0.7%

Shares of NYSE DGX opened at $178.29 on Tuesday. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $174.27 and its 200-day moving average price is $171.35. The company has a market cap of $19.94 billion, a PE ratio of 21.35, a P/E/G ratio of 2.35 and a beta of 0.46. Quest Diagnostics Incorporated has a 52-week low of $146.17 and a 52-week high of $182.38. 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 issued its earnings results on Tuesday, July 22nd. The medical research company reported $2.62 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.57 by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $2.76 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.73 billion. Quest Diagnostics had a net margin of 9.01% and a return on equity of 15.24%. The business's revenue was up 15.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $2.35 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts expect that Quest Diagnostics Incorporated will post 9.7 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Quest Diagnostics Announces Dividend

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

Quest Diagnostics 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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