TCW Group Inc. Takes Position in Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX)

Key Points

• TCW Group Inc. acquired a new position in Quest Diagnostics, purchasing 15,382 shares valued at approximately $2.6 million.
• Insiders, such as SVP Mark E. Delaney, have recently sold shares, indicating potential shifts in sentiment; Delaney sold 874 shares, reflecting a 9.45% decrease in his position.
• Quest Diagnostics reported $2.62 EPS for the last quarter, beating analyst estimates and showcasing a 15.2% year-over-year revenue increase.

TCW Group Inc. acquired a new position in Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm acquired 15,382 shares of the medical research company's stock, valued at approximately $2,603,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Perkins Capital Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Quest Diagnostics in the 1st quarter valued at about $203,000. LPL Financial LLC lifted its holdings in Quest Diagnostics by 27.5% in the first quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 63,955 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $10,821,000 after buying an additional 13,789 shares during the period. Empirical Finance LLC boosted its stake in Quest Diagnostics by 3.9% in the first quarter. Empirical Finance LLC now owns 4,058 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $687,000 after acquiring an additional 154 shares during the last quarter. TD Asset Management Inc boosted its stake in Quest Diagnostics by 7.1% in the first quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 102,530 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $17,348,000 after acquiring an additional 6,825 shares during the last quarter. Finally, HB Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in Quest Diagnostics by 34.7% during the 1st quarter. HB Wealth Management LLC now owns 11,147 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $1,886,000 after acquiring an additional 2,869 shares during the period. 88.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, SVP Mark E. Delaney sold 874 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $175.72, for a total transaction of $153,579.28. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 8,372 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,471,127.84. This trade represents a 9.45% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 8.16% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on DGX shares. William Blair reissued an "outperform" rating on shares of Quest Diagnostics in a research note on Wednesday, July 23rd. Mizuho increased their target price on Quest Diagnostics from $178.00 to $189.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 9th. Wall Street Zen cut Quest Diagnostics from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, June 7th. Barclays boosted their target price on Quest Diagnostics from $175.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their price target on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $160.00 to $178.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 23rd. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Quest Diagnostics has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $185.69.

Quest Diagnostics Trading Down 2.0%

Shares of NYSE:DGX opened at $168.38 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $18.83 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.16, a PEG ratio of 2.24 and a beta of 0.49. Quest Diagnostics Incorporated has a 12 month low of $140.71 and a 12 month high of $182.38. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $174.51 and its 200 day simple moving average is $169.83. The company has a quick ratio of 0.99, a current ratio of 1.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71.

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 22nd. The medical research company reported $2.62 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.57 by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $2.76 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.73 billion. Quest Diagnostics had a return on equity of 15.24% and a net margin of 9.01%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 15.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $2.35 EPS. As a group, research analysts forecast that Quest Diagnostics Incorporated will post 9.7 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Quest Diagnostics Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, July 21st. Shareholders of record on Monday, July 7th were paid a $0.80 dividend. This represents a $3.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.90%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, July 7th. Quest Diagnostics's payout ratio 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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.