Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX) Shares Bought by TD Asset Management Inc

Key Points

• TD Asset Management Inc increased its stake in Quest Diagnostics by 7.1%, acquiring an additional 6,825 shares, bringing its total ownership to 102,530 shares valued at approximately $17.35 million.
• Quest Diagnostics reported a $2.62 EPS for the quarter, surpassing estimates, with revenue reaching $2.76 billion, marking a 15.2% increase from the previous year.
• The company recently declared a quarterly dividend of $0.80 per share, yielding about 1.91%, with a payout ratio of 38.32%.

TD Asset Management Inc raised its position in shares of Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX - Free Report) by 7.1% in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 102,530 shares of the medical research company's stock after acquiring an additional 6,825 shares during the quarter. TD Asset Management Inc owned approximately 0.09% of Quest Diagnostics worth $17,348,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in DGX. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics in the first quarter valued at approximately $1,228,000. First Horizon Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 76.6% in the first quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 189 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 82 shares during the last quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC increased its holdings in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 9.5% in the first quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 18,010 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $3,047,000 after purchasing an additional 1,566 shares during the last quarter. Brown Advisory Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 2.2% in the first quarter. Brown Advisory Inc. now owns 7,081 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $1,198,000 after purchasing an additional 150 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. increased its holdings in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 10.2% in the first quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 14,577 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $2,439,000 after purchasing an additional 1,348 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 88.06% of the company's stock.

Insider Transactions at Quest Diagnostics

In related news, SVP Mark E. Delaney sold 874 shares of Quest Diagnostics stock in a transaction on Monday, May 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $175.72, for a total value of $153,579.28. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 8,372 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,471,127.84. This trade represents a 9.45% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 8.16% of the company's stock.

Quest Diagnostics Trading Up 2.0%

Shares of DGX traded up $3.40 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $170.81. 1,421,070 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,199,615. Quest Diagnostics Incorporated has a 52-week low of $144.87 and a 52-week high of $182.38. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $174.02 and a 200 day simple moving average of $170.01. The firm has a market cap of $19.10 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.46, a P/E/G ratio of 2.24 and a beta of 0.49. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71, a quick ratio of 0.99 and a current ratio of 1.09.

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX - Get Free Report) last released 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 firm had revenue of $2.76 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.73 billion. Quest Diagnostics had a return on equity of 15.24% and a net margin of 9.01%. 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 earnings per share. On average, research analysts anticipate that Quest Diagnostics Incorporated will post 9.7 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Quest Diagnostics Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, July 21st. Investors of record on Monday, July 7th were issued a $0.80 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, July 7th. This represents a $3.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.9%. Quest Diagnostics's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 38.32%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts recently commented on the company. Wall Street Zen cut Quest Diagnostics from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, June 7th. Robert W. Baird raised their target price on Quest Diagnostics from $191.00 to $194.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 23rd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised their target price on Quest Diagnostics from $160.00 to $178.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 23rd. Evercore ISI set a $185.00 target price on Quest Diagnostics in a research note on Wednesday, July 23rd. Finally, Piper Sandler raised their target price on Quest Diagnostics from $180.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday, April 28th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $186.00.

About Quest Diagnostics

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.