Quest Diagnostics Incorporated $DGX Shares Sold by M&G PLC

Key Points

• M&G PLC reduced its Quest Diagnostics stake by 3.2% in the third quarter, selling 25,548 shares. It retained 770,102 shares, valued at about $179.4 million.
• Quest reported quarterly earnings of $3.00 per share, topping the $2.87 analyst consensus, while revenue rose 10% year over year to $3.10 billion.
• The company paid a quarterly dividend of $0.86 per share, equivalent to a 1.3% annualized yield; analysts’ consensus rating was “Moderate Buy,” with a $248.70 average price target.

M&G PLC lessened its position in shares of Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX - Free Report) by 3.2% during the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 770,102 shares of the medical research company's stock after selling 25,548 shares during the period. M&G PLC owned approximately 0.70% of Quest Diagnostics worth $179,434,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in DGX. AlphaCore Capital LLC raised its stake in Quest Diagnostics by 17.0% in the third quarter. AlphaCore Capital LLC now owns 10,967 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $2,556,000 after purchasing an additional 1,596 shares in the last quarter. Fulcrum Asset Management LLP purchased a new position in shares of Quest Diagnostics in the third quarter worth about $387,000. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC increased its stake in Quest Diagnostics by 5.8% in the 3rd quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 18,248 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $4,217,000 after purchasing an additional 1,004 shares during the period. Brighton Jones LLC raised its holdings in Quest Diagnostics by 101.5% during the 3rd quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 4,353 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $1,015,000 after buying an additional 2,193 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Candriam S.C.A. raised its stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 21.8% during the third quarter. Candriam S.C.A. now owns 146,410 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $34,248,000 after acquiring an additional 26,172 shares during the last quarter. 88.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Quest Diagnostics Trading Up 1.4%

Shares of Quest Diagnostics stock opened at $259.28 on Tuesday. Quest Diagnostics Incorporated has a twelve month low of $171.18 and a twelve month high of $259.84. The company has a quick ratio of 1.58, a current ratio of 1.70 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $239.66 and a 200-day moving average price of $214.06. The firm has a market cap of $28.53 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.83, a PEG ratio of 2.29 and a beta of 0.55.

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, October 22nd. The medical research company reported $3.00 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.87 by $0.13. Quest Diagnostics had a return on equity of 16.21% and a net margin of 9.53%. The company had revenue of $3.10 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.05 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $2.60 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 10.0% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts anticipate that Quest Diagnostics Incorporated will post 11.29 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Quest Diagnostics Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, October 21st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, October 6th were issued a dividend of $0.86 per share. This represents a $3.44 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, October 6th. Quest Diagnostics's dividend payout ratio is 34.26%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on DGX shares. Mizuho raised their target price on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $235.00 to $260.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, July 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $220.00 to $250.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 28th. UBS Group reissued a "neutral" rating and issued a $250.00 target price on shares of Quest Diagnostics in a research report on Monday, October 19th. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Quest Diagnostics from a "buy (a)" rating to a "buy (a+)" rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 21st. Finally, Truist Financial boosted their price objective on Quest Diagnostics from $250.00 to $260.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, September 21st. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have issued a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $248.70.

Insider Transactions at Quest Diagnostics

In related news, EVP Catherine Doherty sold 22,105 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $248.02, for a total value of $5,482,482.10. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 71,949 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $17,844,790.98. This trade represents a 23.50% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director Gary Pfeiffer sold 1,203 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, October 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $243.00, for a total transaction of $292,329.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 29,802 shares in the company, valued at $7,241,886. This represents a 3.88% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold a total of 55,985 shares of company stock valued at $13,715,017 over the last quarter. 0.88% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Quest Diagnostics Profile

Quest Diagnostics NYSE: DGX is a provider of diagnostic information services, conducting laboratory tests that help physicians and other health care professionals diagnose, monitor and manage medical conditions. Its services include routine blood and other clinical laboratory testing, anatomic pathology, and specialized molecular and genetic testing.

The company serves patients, physicians, hospitals, health plans, employers and government organizations. In addition to testing performed through its laboratories and patient service centers, Quest offers services such as workplace drug testing and diagnostic support for clinical research.

Quest Diagnostics traces its roots to a clinical laboratory established in 1967 and became an independent company in 1996 after being spun off from Corning.

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