17,704 Shares in Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX) Acquired by Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC

Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor acquired 17,704 shares of the medical research company's stock, valued at approximately $2,441,000.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund lifted its stake in Quest Diagnostics by 8.7% during the 1st quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund now owns 6,921 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $947,000 after acquiring an additional 556 shares during the period. Panagora Asset Management Inc. grew its position in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 97.5% during the 1st quarter. Panagora Asset Management Inc. now owns 7,878 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $1,078,000 after acquiring an additional 3,889 shares during the period. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS increased its stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 3.4% in the 1st quarter. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS now owns 15,923 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $2,179,000 after purchasing an additional 525 shares in the last quarter. Sei Investments Co. lifted its position in Quest Diagnostics by 21.9% during the first quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 191,048 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $26,165,000 after purchasing an additional 34,364 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Aviva PLC grew its holdings in Quest Diagnostics by 22.1% during the first quarter. Aviva PLC now owns 68,068 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $9,316,000 after purchasing an additional 12,298 shares during the period. 88.06% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Quest Diagnostics Stock Down 1.1 %

NYSE DGX traded down $1.49 during trading on Friday, reaching $128.53. 718,020 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,042,580. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $128.11 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $130.58. Quest Diagnostics Incorporated has a 12-month low of $119.59 and a 12-month high of $148.62. The firm has a market cap of $14.27 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.16, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.84 and a beta of 0.91. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70, a current ratio of 1.31 and a quick ratio of 1.20.

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 1st. The medical research company reported $2.15 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.11 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $2.29 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.25 billion. Quest Diagnostics had a net margin of 9.23% and a return on equity of 15.79%. Quest Diagnostics's revenue was down 1.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.98 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Quest Diagnostics Incorporated will post 8.75 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Quest Diagnostics Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 22nd. Investors of record on Monday, April 8th will be given a dividend of $0.75 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 5th. This represents a $3.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.33%. This is an increase from Quest Diagnostics's previous quarterly dividend of $0.71. Quest Diagnostics's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 37.92%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have weighed in on the stock. TheStreet downgraded shares of Quest Diagnostics from a "b-" rating to a "c" rating in a report on Monday, February 5th. Barclays assumed coverage on Quest Diagnostics in a research note on Wednesday, January 3rd. They issued an "equal weight" rating and a $145.00 price target for the company. Truist Financial reaffirmed a "hold" rating and issued a $145.00 price objective on shares of Quest Diagnostics in a research note on Wednesday, March 20th. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded Quest Diagnostics from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and upped their price target for the stock from $140.00 to $155.00 in a research note on Wednesday, February 7th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded shares of Quest Diagnostics from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Quest Diagnostics presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $144.18.

Insider Buying and Selling at Quest Diagnostics

In other Quest Diagnostics news, Director Vicky B. Gregg sold 2,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $126.64, for a total transaction of $316,600.00. Following the completion of 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 accessible through this link. In other news, EVP Catherine T. Doherty sold 821 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $126.14, for a total value of $103,560.94. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 70,800 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $8,930,712. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Vicky B. Gregg sold 2,500 shares of the business's 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 transaction, the director now owns 16,329 shares in the company, valued at $2,067,904.56. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 15,150 shares of company stock worth $1,913,202 over the last quarter. Insiders own 1.70% 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.