Paloma Partners Management Co Purchases New Shares in Quest Diagnostics Incorporated $DGX

Key Points

• Paloma Partners Management Co acquired 1,993 shares of Quest Diagnostics, valued at approximately $337,000, during the first quarter.
• Institutional investors hold a significant 88.06% of Quest Diagnostics' stock, with several hedge funds increasing their stakes considerably in the same quarter.
• Quest Diagnostics' stock recently reported a quarterly dividend of $0.80 per share, representing an annual yield of 1.8%, with a dividend payout ratio of 38.32%.

Paloma Partners Management Co bought a new stake in Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor bought 1,993 shares of the medical research company's stock, valued at approximately $337,000.

A number of other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. BankPlus Wealth Management LLC grew its position in Quest Diagnostics by 2.5% in the first quarter. BankPlus Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,410 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $408,000 after acquiring an additional 59 shares during the period. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. increased its position in Quest Diagnostics by 5.9% in the first quarter. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. now owns 1,059 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $179,000 after purchasing an additional 59 shares during the period. Linden Thomas Advisory Services LLC boosted its holdings in Quest Diagnostics by 0.6% during the first quarter. Linden Thomas Advisory Services LLC now owns 11,513 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $1,948,000 after buying an additional 63 shares during the last quarter. Clarius Group LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 4.8% during the 1st quarter. Clarius Group LLC now owns 1,421 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $240,000 after purchasing an additional 65 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Azzad Asset Management Inc. ADV lifted its holdings in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 1.7% during the 1st quarter. Azzad Asset Management Inc. ADV now owns 3,922 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $664,000 after purchasing an additional 66 shares in the last quarter. 88.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have commented on DGX. Baird R W cut Quest Diagnostics from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, August 25th. UBS Group cut their target price on Quest Diagnostics from $176.00 to $175.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, July 18th. Evercore ISI set a $185.00 target price on Quest Diagnostics in a research note on Wednesday, July 23rd. William Blair restated an "outperform" rating on shares of Quest Diagnostics in a research note on Wednesday, July 23rd. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut Quest Diagnostics from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Sunday, August 10th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have given a Buy rating and ten have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $186.00.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, SVP Patrick Plewman sold 5,535 shares of the business'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 transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 19,219 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,363,325. The trade was a 22.36% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, SVP Karthik Kuppusamy sold 8,269 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $167.40, for a total value of $1,384,230.60. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 10,660 shares in the company, valued at $1,784,484. The trade was a 43.68% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 24,496 shares of company stock worth $4,278,787 over the last three months. 8.16% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Quest Diagnostics Stock Up 0.4%

Shares of NYSE:DGX traded up $0.66 during trading on Thursday, hitting $180.17. 585,707 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,146,034. The stock has a market cap of $20.15 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.58, a P/E/G ratio of 2.41 and a beta of 0.54. Quest Diagnostics Incorporated has a fifty-two week low of $146.17 and a fifty-two week high of $185.62. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $175.18 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $173.30. The company has a current ratio of 1.09, a quick ratio of 0.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71.

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

Quest Diagnostics Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, October 20th. Investors of record on Friday, October 3rd will be issued a dividend of $0.80 per share. 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 payout ratio is presently 38.32%.

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.