J. Safra Sarasin Holding AG Grows Holdings in Quest Diagnostics Incorporated $DGX

Key Points

• J. Safra Sarasin Holding AG increased its stake in Quest Diagnostics by 47.6% in Q2, owning 13,188 shares valued at approximately $2.37 million.
• Quest Diagnostics reported Q2 earnings of $2.62 per share, exceeding expectations, with revenues of $2.76 billion, a 15.2% increase from the previous year.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.80, translating to an annual yield of 1.8% and a dividend payout ratio of 38.32%.

J. Safra Sarasin Holding AG boosted its holdings in shares of Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX - Free Report) by 47.6% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 13,188 shares of the medical research company's stock after acquiring an additional 4,252 shares during the period. J. Safra Sarasin Holding AG's holdings in Quest Diagnostics were worth $2,369,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. grew its stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 126.9% in the 2nd quarter. Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. now owns 152 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 85 shares during the last quarter. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC boosted its holdings in Quest Diagnostics by 57.8% in the first quarter. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC now owns 183 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 67 shares in the last quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. boosted its holdings in Quest Diagnostics by 76.6% in the first quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 189 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $32,000 after acquiring an additional 82 shares in the last quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC grew 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 worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 118 shares during the last quarter. Finally, NBC Securities Inc. bought a new position in shares of Quest Diagnostics during the first quarter valued at $35,000. Institutional investors own 88.06% of the company's stock.

Quest Diagnostics Stock Performance

DGX stock opened at $179.07 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71, a current ratio of 1.09 and a quick ratio of 0.99. Quest Diagnostics Incorporated has a 1 year low of $146.17 and a 1 year high of $191.49. The company has a market cap of $20.02 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.45, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.40 and a beta of 0.56. The stock's fifty day moving average price is $179.92 and its 200-day moving average price is $174.98.

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

Quest Diagnostics Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, October 20th. Investors 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 (DPR) is presently 38.32%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on DGX. Barclays upped their price target on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $185.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Thursday. Robert W. Baird reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and issued a $194.00 target price on shares of Quest Diagnostics in a report on Monday, August 25th. UBS Group cut their price target on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $176.00 to $175.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, July 18th. Weiss Ratings restated a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Quest Diagnostics in a report on Saturday, September 27th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their price objective on Quest Diagnostics from $160.00 to $178.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 23rd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have given a Buy rating and ten have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $186.31.

Insider Activity at Quest Diagnostics

In other Quest Diagnostics news, SVP Karthik Kuppusamy sold 2,210 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $170.00, for a total transaction of $375,700.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 8,450 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,436,500. This represents a 20.73% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, SVP Patrick Plewman sold 1,975 shares of Quest Diagnostics stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the senior vice president owned 15,269 shares in the company, valued at $2,824,765. This represents a 11.45% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 53,186 shares of company stock worth $9,647,471. 8.16% of the stock is owned by company 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.

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