Quest Diagnostics Incorporated $DGX Stock Holdings Decreased by Cwm LLC

Key Points

• Cwm LLC cut its stake in Quest Diagnostics by 28.4% in Q4 to 18,950 shares (about $3.29M), and institutional investors now own roughly 88.1% of DGX.
• Quest beat Q1 estimates (EPS $2.50 vs $2.37; revenue $2.90B, +9.2%) and raised FY‑2026 guidance to $10.630–$10.830, triggering analyst upgrades and improved market sentiment.
• The company raised its quarterly dividend to $0.86 and authorized a $1.0B share buyback (~4.7% of shares), although insiders have sold about 24,083 shares (~$4.95M) in the past three months.

Cwm LLC lessened its position in Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX - Free Report) by 28.4% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 18,950 shares of the medical research company's stock after selling 7,532 shares during the quarter. Cwm LLC's holdings in Quest Diagnostics were worth $3,288,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. JFS Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 114.3% in the fourth quarter. JFS Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 150 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 80 shares in the last quarter. True Wealth Design LLC grew its holdings in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 369.7% during the third quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 155 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 122 shares in the last quarter. Harbor Investment Advisory LLC grew 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 valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 83 shares in the last quarter. First Horizon Corp acquired a new position in Quest Diagnostics during the third quarter valued at $33,000. Finally, Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd acquired a new position in Quest Diagnostics during the third quarter valued at $33,000. 88.06% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Key Headlines Impacting Quest Diagnostics

Here are the key news stories impacting Quest Diagnostics this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q1 beat and raised FY‑2026 outlook — Quest reported stronger-than-expected Q1 revenue and EPS and raised its 2026 guidance, with the CEO citing broad‑based growth across consumer testing and advanced diagnostics. That fundamental beat is the primary bullish catalyst. Quest Diagnostics raises 2026 forecast, CEO highlights broad‑based growth
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts raised estimates and price targets after Q1 — Several firms lifted forecasts/targets (UBS, Robert W. Baird, Barclays, Truist) and coverage pieces highlighted upgraded revenue/earnings outlooks, supporting upside to consensus. These Analysts Boost Their Forecasts On Quest Diagnostics After Better-Than-Expected Earnings
• Positive Sentiment: Technical/market‑strength signal — IBD upgraded Quest for improved price strength, which can attract momentum and retail flows. IBD rating upgrades: Quest Diagnostics shows improved price strength
• Positive Sentiment: Zacks/style momentum coverage — Commentary suggesting DGX is a momentum stock may reinforce interest from style‑focused funds. Here's Why Quest Diagnostics (DGX) is a Strong Momentum Stock
• Neutral Sentiment: Earnings call / deep dive pieces — Multiple writeups summarize the call and the shifting investment story (organic growth, consumer testing momentum, advanced diagnostics). Useful for longer‑term thesis but less likely to move the tape intraday. Quest Diagnostics Inc (DGX) Q1 2026 Earnings Call Highlights DGX Q1 deep dive
• Negative Sentiment: Hedge fund short call — Hedgeye added DGX as a new short idea, creating headline risk and giving short sellers a narrative to increase pressure in the near term. That can amplify intraday selling even with positive fundamentals. Quest Diagnostics added as new short idea at Hedgeye

Quest Diagnostics Stock Down 2.4%

Shares of DGX stock opened at $199.15 on Friday. The stock's 50 day simple moving average is $200.26 and its 200 day simple moving average is $189.19. Quest Diagnostics Incorporated has a twelve month low of $164.65 and a twelve month high of $213.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67, a quick ratio of 0.96 and a current ratio of 1.18. The company has a market capitalization of $22.04 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.01, a PEG ratio of 2.61 and a beta of 0.66.

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 21st. The medical research company reported $2.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping 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 business had revenue of $2.90 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.83 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.94 EPS. Quest Diagnostics's quarterly 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. As a group, research analysts predict that Quest Diagnostics Incorporated will post 10.69 EPS for the current year.

Quest Diagnostics Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 20th. Investors of record on Monday, April 6th were given a dividend of $0.86 per share. This represents a $3.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.7%. This is a boost from Quest Diagnostics's previous quarterly dividend of $0.80. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, April 6th. Quest Diagnostics's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 38.01%.

Quest Diagnostics announced that its board has approved a share buyback program on Tuesday, February 10th that allows the company to buyback $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the medical research company to repurchase up to 4.7% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are generally an indication that the company's board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

DGX has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Jefferies Financial Group reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $225.00 price target on shares of Quest Diagnostics in a research report on Tuesday. Mizuho boosted their price objective on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $210.00 to $235.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 12th. Robert W. Baird upped their price objective on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $224.00 to $229.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday. Barclays increased their target price on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $225.00 to $230.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, UBS Group boosted their price target on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $210.00 to $220.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Quest Diagnostics presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $214.54.

Insider Transactions at Quest Diagnostics

In other news, EVP Catherine T. Doherty sold 5,558 shares of Quest Diagnostics stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $206.21, for a total transaction of $1,146,115.18. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 67,122 shares in the company, valued at approximately $13,841,227.62. The trade was a 7.65% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, SVP Patrick Plewman sold 5,662 shares of Quest Diagnostics stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $204.00, for a total value of $1,155,048.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 15,381 shares in the company, valued at $3,137,724. The trade was a 26.91% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 24,083 shares of company stock valued at $4,945,262. 8.16% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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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