Zevenbergen Capital Investments LLC Buys Shares of 4,050 Quest Diagnostics Incorporated $DGX

Key Points

• Zevenbergen Capital Investments LLC acquired 4,050 shares of Quest Diagnostics valued at approximately $728,000 during the second quarter.
• Quest Diagnostics reported a quarterly earnings per share (EPS) of $2.62, beating analysts' expectations and demonstrating a 15.2% increase in revenue year-over-year.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.80 per share, which will be paid on October 20th, representing an annual yield of 1.7%.

Zevenbergen Capital Investments LLC bought a new stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX - Free Report) during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund bought 4,050 shares of the medical research company's stock, valued at approximately $728,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of DGX. Brighton Jones LLC acquired a new position in shares of Quest Diagnostics in the fourth quarter worth $323,000. Cetera Investment Advisers increased its stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 8.6% in the fourth quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 18,399 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $2,776,000 after acquiring an additional 1,462 shares during the last quarter. Nomura Holdings Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Quest Diagnostics in the fourth quarter worth $554,000. Nissay Asset Management Corp Japan ADV increased its stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 0.6% in the fourth quarter. Nissay Asset Management Corp Japan ADV now owns 14,037 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $2,142,000 after acquiring an additional 90 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Mufg Securities Americas Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Quest Diagnostics in the fourth quarter worth $249,000. 88.06% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Quest Diagnostics Trading Down 0.3%

Quest Diagnostics stock opened at $182.86 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 company has a market capitalization of $20.45 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.90, a PEG ratio of 2.43 and a beta of 0.54. Quest Diagnostics Incorporated has a one year low of $146.17 and a one year high of $185.62. The company's fifty day moving average price is $175.67 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $173.72.

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 analysts' consensus estimates of $2.57 by $0.05. Quest Diagnostics had a net margin of 9.01% and a return on equity of 15.24%. The company had revenue of $2.76 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.73 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $2.35 earnings per share. The business's quarterly revenue was up 15.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Quest Diagnostics has set its FY 2025 guidance at 9.630-9.830 EPS. On average, analysts forecast that Quest Diagnostics Incorporated will post 9.7 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Quest Diagnostics Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, October 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, October 3rd will be issued a dividend of $0.80 per share. This represents a $3.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.7%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 3rd. Quest Diagnostics's dividend payout ratio is 38.32%.

Insider Transactions at Quest Diagnostics

In other Quest Diagnostics news, SVP Patrick Plewman sold 1,975 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $185.00, for a total transaction of $365,375.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 15,269 shares in the company, valued at $2,824,765. This represents a 11.45% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, SVP Karthik Kuppusamy sold 2,210 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $170.00, for a total transaction of $375,700.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president owned 8,450 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,436,500. This trade represents a 20.73% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 24,496 shares of company stock valued at $4,278,787 over the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 8.16% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. William Blair reaffirmed an "outperform" rating on shares of Quest Diagnostics in a research note on Wednesday, July 23rd. Robert W. Baird reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and issued a $194.00 price target on shares of Quest Diagnostics in a research note on Monday, August 25th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their target price on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $160.00 to $178.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 23rd. Evercore ISI set a $185.00 target price on shares of Quest Diagnostics in a research report on Wednesday, July 23rd. Finally, Truist Financial increased their target price on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $190.00 to $192.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 23rd. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have given a Buy rating and ten have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Quest Diagnostics currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $186.00.

Quest Diagnostics Company 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.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding DGX? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX - Free Report).

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.