Quest Diagnostics Incorporated $DGX Shares Sold by Dimensional Fund Advisors LP

Key Points

• Dimensional Fund Advisors LP reduced its stake in Quest Diagnostics by 6.3%, owning 1,912,560 shares worth approximately $323.57 million as of the latest SEC filing.
• Major institutional investors, including Price T Rowe Associates, have increased their holdings in Quest Diagnostics significantly, contributing to 88.06% institutional ownership of the company's stock.
• Quest Diagnostics reported a 15.2% year-over-year revenue increase in its latest earnings, along with an earnings per share of $2.62, exceeding analyst expectations.

Dimensional Fund Advisors LP reduced its stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX - Free Report) by 6.3% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 1,912,560 shares of the medical research company's stock after selling 128,905 shares during the quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP owned about 1.71% of Quest Diagnostics worth $323,574,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC increased its position in shares of 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 purchasing an additional 67 shares during the last quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. increased its position in Quest Diagnostics by 76.6% during the first 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 shares of Quest Diagnostics by 157.3% in the first 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 period. NBC Securities Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics in the 1st quarter worth about $35,000. Finally, Continuum Advisory LLC grew its holdings 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 purchasing an additional 222 shares during the last quarter. 88.06% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have issued reports on DGX shares. Evercore ISI set a $185.00 target price on Quest Diagnostics in a research report on Wednesday, July 23rd. Truist Financial boosted their price objective on Quest Diagnostics from $190.00 to $192.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on Quest Diagnostics from $180.00 to $190.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 6th. Wall Street Zen downgraded Quest Diagnostics from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Sunday, August 10th. Finally, William Blair reissued an "outperform" rating on shares of Quest Diagnostics in a research note on Wednesday, July 23rd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have given a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $186.00.

Quest Diagnostics Stock Down 1.0%

Quest Diagnostics stock traded down $1.9270 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $181.7930. 262,120 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,160,965. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71, a quick ratio of 0.99 and a current ratio of 1.09. The firm has a market cap of $20.33 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.79, a PEG ratio of 2.45 and a beta of 0.46. The business has a fifty day moving average of $175.09 and a 200 day moving average of $172.32. Quest Diagnostics Incorporated has a 12-month low of $146.17 and a 12-month high of $185.62.

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 22nd. The medical research company reported $2.62 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.57 by $0.05. Quest Diagnostics had a return on equity of 15.24% and a net margin of 9.01%.The company had revenue of $2.76 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.73 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $2.35 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 15.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Quest Diagnostics has set its FY 2025 guidance at 9.630-9.830 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that Quest Diagnostics Incorporated will post 9.7 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Quest Diagnostics Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed 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. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 3rd. This represents a $3.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.8%. Quest Diagnostics's dividend payout ratio is currently 38.32%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Quest Diagnostics

In other news, SVP Patrick Plewman sold 5,535 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated 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 owned 19,219 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,363,325. The trade was a 22.36% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, SVP Karthik Kuppusamy sold 8,269 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $167.40, for a total value 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 position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 22,521 shares of company stock valued at $3,913,412. 8.16% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.