Quest Diagnostics Incorporated $DGX Stake Trimmed by AIA Group Ltd

Key Points

• AIA Group Ltd trimmed its Quest Diagnostics stake by 8.7% in the first quarter, selling 4,777 shares and ending with 50,374 shares valued at about $9.87 million.
• Quest Diagnostics reported better-than-expected quarterly results, with EPS of $2.50 versus $2.37 estimated and revenue of $2.90 billion, up 9.2% year over year.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.86 per share, while analysts remain split overall, with a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average price target of $217.17.

AIA Group Ltd lowered its position in shares of Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX - Free Report) by 8.7% during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 50,374 shares of the medical research company's stock after selling 4,777 shares during the quarter. AIA Group Ltd's holdings in Quest Diagnostics were worth $9,872,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of DGX. Key Financial Inc lifted its holdings in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 1,728.6% during the 1st quarter. Key Financial Inc now owns 128 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 121 shares during the last quarter. Quattro Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Quest Diagnostics during the 4th quarter worth $25,000. JFS Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its position 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 last quarter. Harbor Investment Advisory LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 113.7% during the fourth quarter. Harbor Investment Advisory LLC now owns 156 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 83 shares during the last quarter. Finally, DV Equities LLC bought a new stake in Quest Diagnostics in the 4th quarter valued at $27,000. 88.06% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Quest Diagnostics Trading Up 0.7%

DGX stock opened at $210.87 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.08, a current ratio of 1.18 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67. Quest Diagnostics Incorporated has a twelve month low of $165.30 and a twelve month high of $219.20. The company has a market cap of $23.34 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.30, a PEG ratio of 2.51 and a beta of 0.58. The business has a fifty day moving average of $200.52 and a 200-day moving average of $196.13.

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, April 21st. The medical research company reported $2.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.37 by $0.13. Quest Diagnostics had a net margin of 9.07% and a return on equity of 15.60%. The company had revenue of $2.90 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.83 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.94 EPS. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 9.2% on a year-over-year basis. Quest Diagnostics has set its FY 2026 guidance at 10.630-10.830 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Quest Diagnostics Incorporated will post 10.72 EPS for the current year.

Quest Diagnostics Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 22nd. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, July 8th will be given a dividend of $0.86 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, July 8th. This represents a $3.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.6%. Quest Diagnostics's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 38.01%.

Insider Activity

In other Quest Diagnostics news, CEO J. E. Davis sold 10,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $194.14, for a total transaction of $1,941,400.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 132,423 shares in the company, valued at approximately $25,708,601.22. This trade represents a 7.02% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, SVP Karthik Kuppusamy sold 8,147 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $200.00, for a total transaction of $1,629,400.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president owned 13,510 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,702,000. The trade was a 37.62% decrease in their ownership of the stock. 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 own 0.88% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Truist Financial lifted their target price on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $220.00 to $225.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 22nd. Wall Street Zen raised Quest Diagnostics from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Sunday, July 12th. Barclays raised their target price on Quest Diagnostics from $225.00 to $230.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 22nd. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $225.00 price target on shares of Quest Diagnostics in a research report on Tuesday, April 21st. Finally, Robert W. Baird increased their price objective on Quest Diagnostics from $232.00 to $236.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday, July 13th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $217.17.

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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