GAMMA Investing LLC Increases Holdings in Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX)

GAMMA Investing LLC raised its position in Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX - Free Report) by 23,296.2% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 444,996 shares of the medical research company's stock after buying an additional 443,094 shares during the quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC owned about 0.40% of Quest Diagnostics worth $75,293,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. raised its stake in Quest Diagnostics by 1.6% in the 4th quarter. Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. now owns 3,843 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $580,000 after acquiring an additional 60 shares during the period. Net Worth Advisory Group raised its position in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 1.0% in the fourth quarter. Net Worth Advisory Group now owns 6,495 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $980,000 after purchasing an additional 62 shares during the period. Bessemer Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 0.3% during the 4th quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 20,811 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $3,140,000 after buying an additional 65 shares in the last quarter. Mather Group LLC. boosted its holdings in Quest Diagnostics by 10.4% in the 4th quarter. Mather Group LLC. now owns 764 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $115,000 after buying an additional 72 shares during the period. Finally, Private Trust Co. NA grew its stake in Quest Diagnostics by 7.7% in the 4th quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 1,053 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $159,000 after buying an additional 75 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 88.06% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on the company. Evercore ISI raised their price target on Quest Diagnostics from $175.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock an "in-line" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Citigroup lowered Quest Diagnostics from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $185.00 target price for the company. in a report on Tuesday, March 4th. Piper Sandler upped their price target on Quest Diagnostics from $180.00 to $200.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Monday, April 28th. Barclays raised their price objective on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $175.00 to $185.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Finally, Redburn Atlantic initiated coverage on shares of Quest Diagnostics in a report on Wednesday, April 2nd. They set a "buy" rating and a $195.00 target price on the stock. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Quest Diagnostics presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $185.73.

Insider Buying and Selling at Quest Diagnostics

In other news, SVP Karthik Kuppusamy sold 2,555 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $170.00, for a total transaction of $434,350.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 10,575 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,797,750. This represents a 19.46% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Michael E. Prevoznik sold 4,643 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $170.00, for a total transaction of $789,310.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 38,117 shares in the company, valued at $6,479,890. This represents a 10.86% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 47,263 shares of company stock worth $7,979,355 over the last three months. Company insiders own 8.16% of the company's stock.

Quest Diagnostics Price Performance

NYSE DGX traded down $0.17 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $173.64. 602,723 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 987,288. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.82, a current ratio of 1.10 and a quick ratio of 1.02. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $171.34 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $164.96. Quest Diagnostics Incorporated has a 1 year low of $135.47 and a 1 year high of $179.99. The company has a market cap of $19.38 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.58, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.16 and a beta of 0.52.

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 22nd. The medical research company reported $2.21 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.15 by $0.06. Quest Diagnostics had a return on equity of 15.07% and a net margin of 8.80%. The company had revenue of $2.65 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.63 billion. On average, analysts predict that Quest Diagnostics Incorporated will post 9.7 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Quest Diagnostics Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, July 21st. Investors of record on Monday, July 7th will be given a $0.80 dividend. This represents a $3.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.84%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, July 7th. Quest Diagnostics's payout ratio is presently 40.46%.

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.