Quantitative Investment Management LLC Purchases New Shares in Quest Diagnostics Incorporated $DGX

Key Points

• Quantitative Investment Management LLC has acquired an additional 5,190 shares of Quest Diagnostics valued at approximately $878,000 during the first quarter, following their recent 13F filing.
• Insiders at Quest Diagnostics have sold over 22,500 shares worth nearly $3.9 million in the last three months, indicating potential concerns about the company's stock value.
• Quest Diagnostics' stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" from analysts, with a target price averaging around $186.00.

Quantitative Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX - Free Report) in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 5,190 shares of the medical research company's stock, valued at approximately $878,000.

A number of other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in DGX. Boston Partners purchased a new position in Quest Diagnostics in the first quarter valued at about $388,724,000. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD grew its position in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 9.0% in the first quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 5,984,238 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $1,012,534,000 after purchasing an additional 493,960 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 23,296.2% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 444,996 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $75,293,000 after purchasing an additional 443,094 shares in the last quarter. Nuveen LLC purchased a new position in shares of Quest Diagnostics during the 1st quarter worth approximately $55,587,000. Finally, Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH acquired a new position in shares of Quest Diagnostics during the 4th quarter worth approximately $33,698,000. 88.06% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts recently commented on the company. Wall Street Zen lowered Quest Diagnostics from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Sunday, August 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target 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. Evercore ISI set a $185.00 price objective on shares of Quest Diagnostics in a research report on Wednesday, July 23rd. Truist Financial raised their target price on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $190.00 to $192.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 23rd. Finally, UBS Group decreased their target price 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. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have assigned a Buy rating and ten have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $186.00.

Insider Buying and Selling at Quest Diagnostics

In other Quest Diagnostics news, SVP Patrick Plewman sold 5,535 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 6th. The shares were 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 directly owned 19,219 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,363,325. The trade was a 22.36% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, SVP Karthik Kuppusamy sold 8,269 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $167.40, for a total transaction of $1,384,230.60. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 10,660 shares of the company's stock, 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. In the last three months, insiders have sold 24,496 shares of company stock valued at $4,278,787. Corporate insiders own 8.16% of the company's stock.

Quest Diagnostics Stock Down 0.3%

Shares of NYSE:DGX traded down $0.60 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $179.16. 559,951 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,154,988. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71, a quick ratio of 0.99 and a current ratio of 1.09. Quest Diagnostics Incorporated has a twelve month low of $146.17 and a twelve month high of $185.62. The company has a market cap of $20.03 billion, a PE ratio of 21.46, a P/E/G ratio of 2.39 and a beta of 0.46. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $175.04 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $172.87.

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

Quest Diagnostics Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, October 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, October 3rd will be paid a $0.80 dividend. This represents a $3.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.8%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 3rd. Quest Diagnostics's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 38.32%.

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.