Man Group plc Sells 75,392 Shares of Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX)

Man Group plc lessened its position in Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX - Free Report) by 67.4% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 36,511 shares of the medical research company's stock after selling 75,392 shares during the period. Man Group plc's holdings in Quest Diagnostics were worth $5,508,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of DGX. Barclays PLC increased its holdings in Quest Diagnostics by 35.9% during the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 298,922 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $46,407,000 after purchasing an additional 78,980 shares during the period. Park Avenue Securities LLC grew its position in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 22.7% in the 4th quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC now owns 5,169 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $780,000 after buying an additional 955 shares during the last quarter. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 6.9% during the fourth quarter. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. now owns 1,547 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $233,000 after buying an additional 100 shares during the period. Merit Financial Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 39.6% during the fourth quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC now owns 2,452 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $370,000 after acquiring an additional 696 shares in the last quarter. Finally, UMB Bank n.a. raised its holdings in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 1,524.3% during the fourth quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 24,023 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $3,624,000 after acquiring an additional 22,544 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 88.06% of the company's stock.

Quest Diagnostics Stock Performance

DGX traded up $1.72 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $171.34. 1,025,574 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 992,088. The stock has a market capitalization of $19.13 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.28, a P/E/G ratio of 2.16 and a beta of 0.52. The company has a quick ratio of 1.02, a current ratio of 1.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.82. Quest Diagnostics Incorporated has a 52-week low of $135.47 and a 52-week high of $179.99. The company's fifty day moving average price is $170.37 and its 200-day moving average price is $164.31.

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

Quest Diagnostics Announces Dividend

The business 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 dividend of $0.80 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, July 7th. This represents a $3.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.87%. Quest Diagnostics's dividend payout ratio is 40.46%.

Insider Activity at Quest Diagnostics

In other Quest Diagnostics news, SVP Mark E. Delaney sold 874 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $175.72, for a total transaction of $153,579.28. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 8,372 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,471,127.84. This represents a 9.45% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO J. E. Davis sold 39,191 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $168.46, for a total value of $6,602,115.86. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 127,623 shares in the company, valued at $21,499,370.58. This represents a 23.49% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 53,985 shares of company stock valued at $9,147,802. Corporate insiders own 8.16% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

DGX has been the subject of several research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $180.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, May 6th. Robert W. Baird boosted their price target on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $191.00 to $194.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Piper Sandler raised their price objective on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $180.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Monday, April 28th. Redburn Partners set a $195.00 target price on Quest Diagnostics in a research report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Finally, UBS Group increased their price objective on Quest Diagnostics from $166.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $185.73.

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.