Quest Diagnostics Incorporated $DGX Shares Sold by Fiduciary Management Inc. WI

Key Points

• Fiduciary Management Inc. WI reduced its stake in Quest Diagnostics by 3.9%, now holding 1,251,402 shares worth approximately $211.74 million, representing 2.0% of its portfolio.
• Quest Diagnostics recently reported quarterly earnings of $2.62 per share, exceeding analysts' expectations, with revenues reaching $2.76 billion, a 15.2% increase from the previous year.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.80 per share, payable on October 20, which represents an annualized yield of 1.7% and a payout ratio of 38.32%.

Fiduciary Management Inc. WI cut its stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX - Free Report) by 3.9% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 1,251,402 shares of the medical research company's stock after selling 51,298 shares during the period. Quest Diagnostics makes up approximately 2.0% of Fiduciary Management Inc. WI's holdings, making the stock its 14th largest holding. Fiduciary Management Inc. WI owned about 1.12% of Quest Diagnostics worth $211,737,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC grew 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 worth $31,000 after buying an additional 67 shares during the last quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. raised its position in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 76.6% during the first quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 189 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 82 shares during the period. Golden State Wealth Management LLC raised its position in Quest Diagnostics by 157.3% during the first quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC now owns 193 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 118 shares during the period. NBC Securities Inc. acquired a new position in Quest Diagnostics during the first quarter valued at $35,000. Finally, Continuum Advisory LLC increased its position in Quest Diagnostics by 11,100.0% in the 1st quarter. Continuum Advisory LLC now owns 224 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $38,000 after purchasing an additional 222 shares during the last quarter. 88.06% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

DGX has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Piper Sandler upped their price target on Quest Diagnostics from $180.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday, April 28th. Truist Financial raised their price target on Quest Diagnostics from $190.00 to $192.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 23rd. William Blair reiterated an "outperform" rating on shares of Quest Diagnostics in a report on Wednesday, July 23rd. Evercore ISI set a $185.00 price target on Quest Diagnostics in a report on Wednesday, July 23rd. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their target price on Quest Diagnostics from $160.00 to $178.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 23rd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have assigned a Buy rating and nine have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $186.00.

Insider Buying and Selling

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

Quest Diagnostics Stock Down 0.8%

DGX stock traded down $1.4950 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $178.7350. 753,356 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,162,836. The stock has a market cap of $19.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.41, a P/E/G ratio of 2.39 and a beta of 0.46. 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 firm's 50 day moving average price is $175.03 and its 200 day moving average price is $172.67. Quest Diagnostics Incorporated has a fifty-two week low of $146.17 and a fifty-two week high of $185.62.

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX - Get Free Report) last announced 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 business had revenue of $2.76 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.73 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $2.35 earnings per share. Quest Diagnostics's revenue 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. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Quest Diagnostics Incorporated will post 9.7 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Quest Diagnostics Dividend Announcement

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

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.