Quest Diagnostics Incorporated Forecasted to Earn Q2 2024 Earnings of $2.26 Per Share (NYSE:DGX)

Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX - Free Report) - Analysts at Zacks Research dropped their Q2 2024 earnings per share estimates for Quest Diagnostics in a research note issued to investors on Monday, May 13th. Zacks Research analyst M. Mondal now anticipates that the medical research company will post earnings of $2.26 per share for the quarter, down from their previous estimate of $2.28. The consensus estimate for Quest Diagnostics' current full-year earnings is $8.78 per share. Zacks Research also issued estimates for Quest Diagnostics' Q3 2024 earnings at $2.27 EPS and FY2024 earnings at $8.73 EPS.

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 23rd. The medical research company reported $2.04 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.86 by $0.18. The firm had revenue of $2.37 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.29 billion. Quest Diagnostics had a net margin of 9.11% and a return on equity of 15.52%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 1.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $2.04 earnings per share.

DGX has been the topic of several other reports. Mizuho boosted their target price on Quest Diagnostics from $150.00 to $155.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 24th. Barclays raised their target price on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $138.00 to $144.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 25th. Leerink Partnrs reiterated a "market perform" rating on shares of Quest Diagnostics in a research report on Monday, February 26th. TheStreet lowered shares of Quest Diagnostics from a "b-" rating to a "c" rating in a report on Monday, February 5th. Finally, UBS Group lifted their price objective on Quest Diagnostics from $139.00 to $146.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 24th. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $146.17.

Quest Diagnostics Trading Up 1.2 %

DGX traded up $1.62 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $140.78. 757,612 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,035,547. The stock has a market capitalization of $15.64 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.95, a P/E/G ratio of 3.06 and a beta of 0.88. Quest Diagnostics has a 52 week low of $119.59 and a 52 week high of $145.58. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $132.36 and a two-hundred day moving average of $132.52. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59, a current ratio of 0.97 and a quick ratio of 0.89.

Quest Diagnostics Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, July 22nd. Investors of record on Monday, July 8th will be given a dividend of $0.75 per share. This represents a $3.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.13%. Quest Diagnostics's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 38.22%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Quest Diagnostics

In other news, Director Vicky B. Gregg sold 2,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, February 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $126.64, for a total value of $316,600.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 16,329 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,067,904.56. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In other news, Director Vicky B. Gregg sold 2,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $126.64, for a total transaction of $316,600.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 16,329 shares in the company, valued at $2,067,904.56. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, SVP Karthik Kuppusamy sold 1,760 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $140.00, for a total transaction of $246,400.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 13,435 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,880,900. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 16,910 shares of company stock worth $2,159,602. 0.79% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Quest Diagnostics

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. increased its position in Quest Diagnostics by 2.9% during the third quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 45,910 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $5,595,000 after acquiring an additional 1,281 shares during the last quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC purchased a new position in shares of Quest Diagnostics in the third quarter worth approximately $506,000. Assetmark Inc. grew its position in Quest Diagnostics by 31.7% during the third quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 5,089 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $620,000 after buying an additional 1,224 shares during the period. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd increased its holdings in Quest Diagnostics by 1.1% during the third quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd now owns 9,707 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $1,183,000 after buying an additional 108 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Teacher Retirement System of Texas raised its position in Quest Diagnostics by 132.5% in the third quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas now owns 19,667 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $2,397,000 after acquiring an additional 11,208 shares during the period. 88.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.