Ground Swell Capital LLC Acquires New Shares in Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX)

Key Points

• Ground Swell Capital LLC has acquired a new stake in Quest Diagnostics, purchasing 2,010 shares valued at approximately $340,000.
• Several other hedge funds have increased their holdings in Quest Diagnostics, with NBC Securities Inc. acquiring a new stake worth around $35,000.
• Quest Diagnostics announced a quarterly dividend of $0.80 per share, yielding 1.8%, with the payout scheduled for October 20th.

Ground Swell Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 2,010 shares of the medical research company's stock, valued at approximately $340,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of DGX. Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund increased its position in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 36.8% in the first quarter. Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund now owns 34,220 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $5,790,000 after purchasing an additional 9,200 shares during the last quarter. Boston Partners bought a new position in shares of Quest Diagnostics in the first quarter worth approximately $388,724,000. Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. increased its position in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 21.0% in the first quarter. Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 3,412 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $577,000 after purchasing an additional 593 shares during the last quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd increased its position in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 1,495.2% in the first quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 335 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $57,000 after purchasing an additional 314 shares during the last quarter. Finally, National Pension Service increased its position in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 4.0% in the first quarter. National Pension Service now owns 227,378 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $38,472,000 after purchasing an additional 8,809 shares during the last quarter. 88.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Quest Diagnostics Stock Up 0.7%

DGX traded up $1.23 during trading on Friday, reaching $179.67. The stock had a trading volume of 810,247 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,287,668. The stock's 50 day moving average is $174.68 and its two-hundred day moving average is $171.85. The company has a current ratio of 1.09, a quick ratio of 0.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71. The company has a market capitalization of $20.09 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.52, a P/E/G 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 $182.38.

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 22nd. The medical research company reported $2.62 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.57 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $2.76 billion during 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 quarterly revenue was up 15.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $2.35 earnings per share. As a group, analysts expect that Quest Diagnostics Incorporated will post 9.7 earnings per share for the current year.

Quest Diagnostics Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, October 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, October 3rd will be issued a $0.80 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 3rd. 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%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, SVP Karthik Kuppusamy sold 8,269 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $167.40, for a total transaction of $1,384,230.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 10,660 shares in the company, valued at $1,784,484. This trade represents a 43.68% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, SVP Patrick Plewman sold 5,535 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $175.00, for a total value of $968,625.00. Following 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 ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 16,014 shares of company stock valued at $2,728,556. 8.16% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

DGX has been the topic of several research analyst reports. 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. Barclays upped their price objective on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $175.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Robert W. Baird upped their target price on Quest Diagnostics from $191.00 to $194.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 23rd. Piper Sandler upped their target price on Quest Diagnostics from $180.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday, April 28th. Finally, Truist Financial upped their target price on Quest Diagnostics from $190.00 to $192.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research note 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 company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $186.00.

Quest Diagnostics Company 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.