Quest Diagnostics Incorporated $DGX Shares Purchased by Vanguard Group Inc.

Key Points

• Vanguard Group increased its stake in Quest Diagnostics by 1.0% to 14,392,082 shares, representing about 12.94% of the company and valued at $2.497 billion at quarter-end.
• Quest Diagnostics beat quarterly expectations with $2.50 EPS (vs. $2.37 est.) and $2.90B in revenue (+9.2% YoY), and set FY2026 guidance of $10.63–$10.83 per share.
• The company raised its quarterly dividend to $0.86 (annualized $3.44, ~1.8% yield) and authorized a $1.0 billion share buyback program (up to 4.7% of shares).

Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX - Free Report) by 1.0% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 14,392,082 shares of the medical research company's stock after buying an additional 140,450 shares during the quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. owned about 12.94% of Quest Diagnostics worth $2,497,458,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in DGX. JFS Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 114.3% during the 4th quarter. JFS Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 150 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 80 shares during the period. Harbor Investment Advisory LLC lifted its stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 113.7% during the 4th quarter. Harbor Investment Advisory LLC now owns 156 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 83 shares during the period. True Wealth Design LLC lifted its stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 369.7% during the 3rd quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 155 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 122 shares during the period. First Horizon Corp purchased a new position in shares of Quest Diagnostics during the 3rd quarter worth $33,000. Finally, Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Quest Diagnostics during the 3rd quarter worth $33,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 88.06% of the company's stock.

Quest Diagnostics Trading Down 2.9%

NYSE:DGX opened at $189.30 on Thursday. The business's 50-day moving average is $199.33 and its two-hundred day moving average is $189.61. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67, a current ratio of 1.18 and a quick ratio of 1.08. Quest Diagnostics Incorporated has a 12 month low of $164.65 and a 12 month high of $213.50. The firm has a market capitalization of $20.95 billion, a PE ratio of 20.92, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.35 and a beta of 0.66.

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 21st. The medical research company reported $2.50 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.37 by $0.13. Quest Diagnostics had a return on equity of 15.60% and a net margin of 9.07%.The company had revenue of $2.90 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.83 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.94 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was up 9.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Quest Diagnostics has set its FY 2026 guidance at 10.630-10.830 EPS. Research analysts predict that Quest Diagnostics Incorporated will post 10.71 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Quest Diagnostics Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 20th. Stockholders of record on Monday, April 6th were paid a dividend of $0.86 per share. This is a boost from Quest Diagnostics's previous quarterly dividend of $0.80. This represents a $3.44 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.8%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, April 6th. Quest Diagnostics's payout ratio is 38.01%.

Quest Diagnostics announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock repurchase plan on Tuesday, February 10th that allows the company to buyback $1.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the medical research company to purchase up to 4.7% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are typically a sign that the company's board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have weighed in on the company. Jefferies Financial Group reissued a "buy" rating and set a $225.00 price target on shares of Quest Diagnostics in a research note on Tuesday, April 21st. Robert W. Baird increased their price target on Quest Diagnostics from $224.00 to $229.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 22nd. Truist Financial increased their price target on Quest Diagnostics from $220.00 to $225.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 22nd. UBS Group increased their price target on Quest Diagnostics from $210.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 22nd. Finally, Citigroup increased their target price on Quest Diagnostics from $190.00 to $215.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 10th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Quest Diagnostics presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $214.54.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, SVP Karthik Kuppusamy sold 2,628 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $204.86, for a total transaction of $538,372.08. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 13,441 shares in the company, valued at $2,753,523.26. This trade represents a 16.35% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Catherine T. Doherty sold 5,558 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $206.21, for a total value of $1,146,115.18. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 67,122 shares of the company's stock, valued at $13,841,227.62. This represents a 7.65% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold 24,083 shares of company stock valued at $4,945,262 over the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.88% of the company's stock.

Quest Diagnostics Profile

Quest Diagnostics NYSE: DGX is a leading provider of diagnostic information services that supports clinical decision-making for patients, physicians and healthcare organizations. The company operates a network of clinical laboratories and patient service centers that perform a broad range of laboratory tests and diagnostic assays used in routine care, disease diagnosis, monitoring and screening.

Its services span core clinical laboratory testing, anatomic pathology, molecular and genomic diagnostics, infectious disease testing and toxicology.

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