Wedge Capital Management L L P NC Sells 18,080 Shares of Quest Diagnostics Incorporated $DGX

Key Points

• Wedge Capital Management L L P NC reduced its stake in Quest Diagnostics by 9.4%, selling 18,080 shares, and now holds approximately 0.16% of the company, valued at $31.3 million.
• Several other institutional investors have also adjusted their positions in Quest Diagnostics, with hedge funds owning 88.06% of the company’s stock.
• Quest Diagnostics has announced a quarterly dividend of $0.80 per share, set to be paid on October 20th, representing a 1.7% dividend yield.

Wedge Capital Management L L P NC reduced its holdings in Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX - Free Report) by 9.4% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 174,290 shares of the medical research company's stock after selling 18,080 shares during the period. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC owned about 0.16% of Quest Diagnostics worth $31,308,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd acquired a new stake in Quest Diagnostics during the 1st quarter worth approximately $1,228,000. First Horizon Advisors Inc. raised its stake in Quest Diagnostics by 76.6% during the first quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 189 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $32,000 after acquiring an additional 82 shares in the last quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC boosted its holdings in 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 acquiring an additional 1,566 shares during the last quarter. Brown Advisory Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 2.2% during the 1st 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 in the last quarter. Finally, Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. increased its position in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 10.2% during the 1st quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 14,577 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $2,439,000 after purchasing an additional 1,348 shares during the last quarter. 88.06% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Quest Diagnostics 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 sale, the senior vice president directly owned 10,660 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,784,484. The trade was a 43.68% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, SVP Patrick Plewman sold 5,535 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $175.00, for a total transaction of $968,625.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 19,219 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,363,325. This trade represents a 22.36% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 24,496 shares of company stock worth $4,278,787. Insiders own 8.16% of the company's stock.

Quest Diagnostics Stock Performance

NYSE DGX opened at $183.69 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71, a current ratio of 1.09 and a quick ratio of 0.99. The stock's 50 day simple moving average is $176.68 and its 200-day simple moving average is $174.00. The company has a market cap of $20.54 billion, a PE ratio of 22.00, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.43 and a beta of 0.54. Quest Diagnostics Incorporated has a 1-year low of $146.17 and a 1-year high of $185.62.

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, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.57 by $0.05. Quest Diagnostics had a return on equity of 15.24% and a net margin of 9.01%.The firm had revenue of $2.76 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.73 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $2.35 earnings per share. The business's revenue was up 15.2% on a year-over-year basis. Quest Diagnostics has set its FY 2025 guidance at 9.630-9.830 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Quest Diagnostics Incorporated will post 9.7 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Quest Diagnostics Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared 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. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 3rd. This represents a $3.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.7%. Quest Diagnostics's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 38.32%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

DGX has been the topic of several recent research reports. Wall Street Zen lowered Quest Diagnostics from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Sunday, August 10th. Robert W. Baird reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and issued a $194.00 price target on shares of Quest Diagnostics in a report on Monday, August 25th. Baird R W downgraded shares of Quest Diagnostics from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, August 25th. Truist Financial increased their price target on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $190.00 to $192.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 23rd. Finally, UBS Group cut 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 analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have given a Buy rating and ten have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Quest Diagnostics currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $186.00.

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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