Quest Diagnostics Incorporated $DGX Stock Position Increased by Credit Agricole S A

Key Points

• Credit Agricole S A significantly increased its stake in Quest Diagnostics, raising its holdings by 86.5% and owning 0.07% of the company, valued at roughly $13 million.
• Several hedge funds have also adjusted their positions in Quest Diagnostics, with notable increases from firms like Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC and Continuum Advisory LLC.
• Quest Diagnostics recently announced a quarterly dividend of $0.80, reflecting an annual yield of 1.7%, with a payout ratio of 38.32%.

Credit Agricole S A lifted its position in Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX - Free Report) by 86.5% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 76,933 shares of the medical research company's stock after acquiring an additional 35,688 shares during the quarter. Credit Agricole S A owned 0.07% of Quest Diagnostics worth $13,017,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in DGX. Boston Partners acquired a new position in shares of Quest Diagnostics in the 1st quarter worth approximately $388,724,000. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD grew its position in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 42.5% in the 4th 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 acquiring an additional 1,637,525 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its position in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 23,296.2% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 444,996 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $75,293,000 after acquiring an additional 443,094 shares in the last quarter. Nuveen LLC acquired a new position in shares of Quest Diagnostics in the 1st quarter worth approximately $55,587,000. Finally, Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH acquired a new position in shares of Quest Diagnostics in the 4th quarter worth approximately $33,698,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 88.06% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Quest Diagnostics

In other Quest Diagnostics news, SVP Patrick Plewman sold 4,532 shares of Quest Diagnostics stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $183.00, for a total transaction of $829,356.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president owned 17,244 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,155,652. The trade was a 20.81% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, SVP Karthik Kuppusamy sold 2,210 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $170.00, for a total value of $375,700.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 8,450 shares in the company, valued at $1,436,500. This represents a 20.73% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 22,521 shares of company stock worth $3,913,412 in the last ninety days. 8.16% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Quest Diagnostics Stock Performance

Quest Diagnostics stock traded down $3.62 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $180.10. 947,753 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 936,669. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $175.09 and a 200 day moving average price of $172.49. The company has a quick ratio of 0.99, a current ratio of 1.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71. The company has a market cap of $20.14 billion, a PE ratio of 21.57, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.39 and a beta of 0.46. Quest Diagnostics Incorporated has a one year low of $146.17 and a one year high of $185.62.

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 for the quarter, beating 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 return on equity of 15.24% and a net margin of 9.01%.The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 15.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $2.35 EPS. Quest Diagnostics has set its FY 2025 guidance at 9.630-9.830 EPS. On average, equities analysts forecast that Quest Diagnostics Incorporated will post 9.7 EPS for the current year.

Quest Diagnostics Dividend Announcement

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have recently commented on DGX shares. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their target price on Quest Diagnostics from $160.00 to $178.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 23rd. Wall Street Zen downgraded Quest Diagnostics from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Sunday, August 10th. Evercore ISI set a $185.00 price target on Quest Diagnostics in a report on Wednesday, July 23rd. William Blair reissued an "outperform" rating on shares of Quest Diagnostics in a report on Wednesday, July 23rd. Finally, Piper Sandler raised their price target on Quest Diagnostics from $180.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Monday, April 28th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have issued a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $186.00.

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.