Gulf International Bank UK Ltd Sells 2,772 Shares of Quest Diagnostics Incorporated $DGX

Key Points

• Gulf International Bank UK Ltd reduced its holdings in Quest Diagnostics by 31.7%, owning 5,985 shares after selling 2,772 shares during the first quarter, valuing its stake at approximately $1,012,000.
• Several institutional investors increased their stakes in Quest Diagnostics, with Continuum Advisory LLC boosting its holdings by an extraordinary 11,100%.
• Quest Diagnostics declared a quarterly dividend of $0.80 to be paid on October 20th, representing an annualized dividend of $3.20 and a yield of 1.8%.

Gulf International Bank UK Ltd decreased its holdings in Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX - Free Report) by 31.7% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 5,985 shares of the medical research company's stock after selling 2,772 shares during the quarter. Gulf International Bank UK Ltd's holdings in Quest Diagnostics were worth $1,012,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of DGX. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD grew its stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 42.5% in the fourth 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 purchasing an additional 1,637,525 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its position in Quest Diagnostics by 23,296.2% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 444,996 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $75,293,000 after acquiring an additional 443,094 shares during the last quarter. Nuveen LLC bought a new stake in Quest Diagnostics during the first quarter valued at $55,587,000. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH acquired a new position in shares of Quest Diagnostics during the fourth quarter valued at about $33,698,000. Finally, Northern Trust Corp raised its holdings in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 18.7% during the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 1,196,429 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $180,493,000 after purchasing an additional 188,402 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 88.06% of the company's stock.

Quest Diagnostics Price Performance

NYSE DGX traded up $0.4450 on Thursday, hitting $184.8450. The stock had a trading volume of 300,763 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,161,785. Quest Diagnostics Incorporated has a 52-week low of $146.17 and a 52-week high of $185.26. 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 company has a market capitalization of $20.67 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.12, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.43 and a beta of 0.46. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $175.00 and a 200-day moving average of $172.18.

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 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 analysts' expectations of $2.73 billion. Quest Diagnostics had a net margin of 9.01% and a return on equity of 15.24%. The business's quarterly revenue was up 15.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $2.35 EPS. Quest Diagnostics has set its FY 2025 guidance at 9.630-9.830 EPS. Equities analysts expect that Quest Diagnostics Incorporated will post 9.7 EPS for the current year.

Quest Diagnostics Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, October 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, October 3rd will be paid a $0.80 dividend. This represents a $3.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.7%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 3rd. Quest Diagnostics's dividend payout ratio is currently 38.32%.

Insider Activity at Quest Diagnostics

In other Quest Diagnostics news, SVP Karthik Kuppusamy sold 8,269 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $167.40, for a total value 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 represents a 43.68% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Patrick Plewman sold 5,535 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $175.00, for a total transaction 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 approximately $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. Insiders have sold 17,989 shares of company stock valued at $3,084,056 over the last three months. 8.16% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on DGX shares. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their target price on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $160.00 to $178.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 23rd. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Quest Diagnostics from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Sunday, August 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $180.00 to $190.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 6th. Truist Financial increased their target price on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $190.00 to $192.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 23rd. Finally, Piper Sandler increased their target price on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $180.00 to $200.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Monday, April 28th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have assigned a Buy rating and eight have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $186.00.

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.