Rice Partnership LLC Invests $3.33 Million in Quest Diagnostics Incorporated $DGX

Key Points

• Rice Partnership LLC has invested approximately $3.33 million in Quest Diagnostics by acquiring 18,552 shares during the second quarter.
• Quest Diagnostics recently reported better-than-expected earnings of $2.62 per share and has set its FY 2025 guidance at 9.630-9.830 EPS.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.80, representing an annual yield of 1.8%, to be paid on October 20th.

Rice Partnership LLC acquired a new position in Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX - Free Report) during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund acquired 18,552 shares of the medical research company's stock, valued at approximately $3,332,000.

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. grew its stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 126.9% in the 2nd quarter. Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. now owns 152 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 85 shares during the last quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. grew its stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 76.6% in the 1st quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 189 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 82 shares during the last quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 157.3% in the 1st quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC now owns 193 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 118 shares during the last quarter. Ameritas Advisory Services LLC purchased a new position in shares of Quest Diagnostics in the second quarter worth approximately $35,000. Finally, NBC Securities Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics during the first quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 88.06% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on DGX shares. Truist Financial boosted their price target on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $190.00 to $192.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 23rd. Barclays boosted their price target on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $185.00 to $190.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Thursday, October 2nd. Weiss Ratings restated a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Quest Diagnostics in a report on Wednesday. Robert W. Baird restated a "neutral" rating and set a $194.00 price target on shares of Quest Diagnostics in a report on Monday, August 25th. Finally, UBS Group lowered their price objective 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 research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have assigned a Buy rating and ten have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $186.63.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, SVP Karthik Kuppusamy sold 8,269 shares of Quest Diagnostics stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $167.40, for a total value of $1,384,230.60. Following the transaction, the senior vice president owned 10,660 shares in the company, valued at $1,784,484. This trade represents a 43.68% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, SVP Michael E. Prevoznik sold 28,288 shares of Quest Diagnostics stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $187.12, for a total transaction of $5,293,250.56. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president owned 38,117 shares in the company, valued at $7,132,453.04. This trade represents a 42.60% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 53,186 shares of company stock worth $9,647,471 in the last quarter. 8.16% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Quest Diagnostics Price Performance

NYSE DGX opened at $180.85 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.99, a current ratio of 1.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71. The stock has a market capitalization of $20.22 billion, a PE ratio of 21.66, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.41 and a beta of 0.56. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $180.66 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $175.26. Quest Diagnostics Incorporated has a 12-month low of $146.91 and a 12-month high of $191.49.

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, July 22nd. The medical research company reported $2.62 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.57 by $0.05. The business 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%. Quest Diagnostics's revenue was up 15.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business posted $2.35 EPS. Quest Diagnostics has set its FY 2025 guidance at 9.630-9.830 EPS. As a group, equities analysts predict that Quest Diagnostics Incorporated will post 9.7 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Quest Diagnostics Announces Dividend

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

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