Karthik Kuppusamy Sells 1,760 Shares of Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX) Stock

Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX - Get Free Report) SVP Karthik Kuppusamy sold 1,760 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $140.00, for a total value of $246,400.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 13,435 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,880,900. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link.

Quest Diagnostics Stock Performance

Shares of DGX stock traded down $0.63 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $137.55. The stock had a trading volume of 676,618 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,074,200. Quest Diagnostics Incorporated has a twelve month low of $119.59 and a twelve month high of $145.58. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59, a current ratio of 0.97 and a quick ratio of 0.89. The stock's 50 day moving average is $129.91 and its 200 day moving average is $131.57. The firm has a market capitalization of $15.28 billion, a PE ratio of 18.51, a PEG ratio of 3.03 and a beta of 0.91.

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 23rd. The medical research company reported $2.04 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.86 by $0.18. Quest Diagnostics had a return on equity of 15.52% and a net margin of 9.11%. The business had revenue of $2.37 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.29 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $2.04 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was up 1.7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts forecast that Quest Diagnostics Incorporated will post 8.78 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Quest Diagnostics Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 22nd. Stockholders of record on Monday, April 8th were paid a dividend of $0.75 per share. This represents a $3.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.18%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, April 5th. This is a boost from Quest Diagnostics's previous quarterly dividend of $0.71. Quest Diagnostics's dividend payout ratio is 38.22%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on DGX shares. StockNews.com raised Quest Diagnostics from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, April 25th. Leerink Partnrs reaffirmed a "market perform" rating on shares of Quest Diagnostics in a report on Monday, February 26th. Citigroup upped their price target on Quest Diagnostics from $135.00 to $145.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 24th. Jefferies Financial Group raised Quest Diagnostics from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and upped their price target for the company from $140.00 to $155.00 in a report on Wednesday, February 7th. Finally, TheStreet downgraded Quest Diagnostics from a "b-" rating to a "c" rating in a report on Monday, February 5th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Quest Diagnostics currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $146.17.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Quest Diagnostics

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of DGX. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC raised its stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 1.9% during the third quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 4,417 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $538,000 after purchasing an additional 84 shares during the last quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. raised its position in Quest Diagnostics by 6.9% in the third quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. now owns 47,154 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $5,746,000 after acquiring an additional 3,057 shares in the last quarter. Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund raised its position in Quest Diagnostics by 7.5% in the third quarter. Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund now owns 28,020 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $3,415,000 after acquiring an additional 1,950 shares in the last quarter. Kingswood Wealth Advisors LLC raised its position in Quest Diagnostics by 149.9% in the third quarter. Kingswood Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 3,673 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $448,000 after acquiring an additional 2,203 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Xponance Inc. raised its position in Quest Diagnostics by 13.9% in the third quarter. Xponance Inc. now owns 16,572 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $2,019,000 after acquiring an additional 2,025 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other 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.