Leerink Partnrs Issues Pessimistic Estimate for DGX Earnings

Key Points

• Leerink Partners has decreased its Q4 2025 earnings per share estimate for Quest Diagnostics from $2.45 to $2.39, although the company is expected to report full-year earnings of $9.70 per share.
• Despite a recent EPS of $2.60 for the last quarter, which exceeded analyst expectations, shares opened at $183.29 with a market cap of $20.39 billion.
• Quest Diagnostics recently announced a quarterly dividend of $0.80 per share, representing an annual yield of 1.7% and a payout ratio of 38.32%.

Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX - Free Report) - Leerink Partnrs reduced their Q4 2025 EPS estimates for shares of Quest Diagnostics in a note issued to investors on Tuesday, October 21st. Leerink Partnrs analyst M. Cherny now expects that the medical research company will earn $2.39 per share for the quarter, down from their prior estimate of $2.45. The consensus estimate for Quest Diagnostics' current full-year earnings is $9.70 per share.

A number of other brokerages have also commented on DGX. Morgan Stanley set a $207.00 price target on shares of Quest Diagnostics and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday. Mizuho upped their price target on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $190.00 to $210.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, October 17th. William Blair reiterated an "outperform" rating on shares of Quest Diagnostics in a research note on Wednesday, July 23rd. UBS Group upped their price target on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $180.00 to $190.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, October 17th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their price target on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $160.00 to $178.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 23rd. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have issued a Buy rating and ten have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $196.31.

Quest Diagnostics Stock Up 1.2%

Shares of DGX opened at $183.29 on Friday. Quest Diagnostics has a 52 week low of $148.70 and a 52 week high of $197.55. The firm has a market cap of $20.39 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.51, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.39 and a beta of 0.56. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $182.94 and its 200 day simple moving average is $176.62. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71, a quick ratio of 0.99 and a current ratio of 1.13.

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 21st. The medical research company reported $2.60 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.51 by $0.09. Quest Diagnostics had a net margin of 8.91% and a return on equity of 15.47%. The business had revenue of $2.82 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.73 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $2.30 EPS. Quest Diagnostics's quarterly revenue was up 13.2% on a year-over-year basis. Quest Diagnostics has set its FY 2025 guidance at 9.760-9.840 EPS.

Quest Diagnostics Announces Dividend

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

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, SVP Michael E. Prevoznik sold 28,288 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $187.12, for a total transaction of $5,293,250.56. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president owned 38,117 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $7,132,453.04. This represents a 42.60% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 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. Insiders have sold a total of 53,186 shares of company stock worth $9,647,471 in the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 8.16% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Quest Diagnostics

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund lifted its holdings in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 32.1% during the 3rd quarter. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund now owns 12,763 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $2,432,000 after acquiring an additional 3,100 shares during the period. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 61.8% during the 3rd quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 18,050 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $3,440,000 after acquiring an additional 6,892 shares during the period. G&S Capital LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 117.1% during the 3rd quarter. G&S Capital LLC now owns 15,249 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $2,906,000 after acquiring an additional 8,225 shares during the period. Steigerwald Gordon & Koch Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $47,000. Finally, Benjamin Edwards Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 2.1% during the 3rd quarter. Benjamin Edwards Inc. now owns 6,891 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $1,313,000 after acquiring an additional 140 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 88.06% of the company's stock.

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.

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