Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. Sells 223,894 Shares of Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX)

Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. cut its position in shares of Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX - Free Report) by 44.3% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 281,657 shares of the medical research company's stock after selling 223,894 shares during the quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. owned about 0.25% of Quest Diagnostics worth $38,835,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Trillium Asset Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 4.4% in the fourth quarter. Trillium Asset Management LLC now owns 121,664 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $16,775,000 after acquiring an additional 5,166 shares during the last quarter. Navellier & Associates Inc. grew its position in Quest Diagnostics by 32.8% during the 4th quarter. Navellier & Associates Inc. now owns 3,660 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $505,000 after purchasing an additional 904 shares during the last quarter. Panagora Asset Management Inc. increased its stake in Quest Diagnostics by 38.5% during the 4th quarter. Panagora Asset Management Inc. now owns 9,534 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $1,315,000 after purchasing an additional 2,649 shares in the last quarter. Fiera Capital Corp purchased a new position in Quest Diagnostics in the fourth quarter worth about $696,000. Finally, Farrow Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,867,000. 88.06% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, SVP Karthik Kuppusamy sold 1,760 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 29th. The shares were 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 in the company, valued at $1,880,900. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In other news, SVP Michael E. Prevoznik sold 661 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $126.14, for a total transaction of $83,378.54. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 40,206 shares in the company, valued at $5,071,584.84. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 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 directly owns 13,435 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,880,900. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 16,910 shares of company stock worth $2,159,602 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.79% of the company's stock.

Quest Diagnostics Trading Up 1.3 %

DGX stock traded up $1.91 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $144.34. 1,422,833 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,058,199. The firm has a market capitalization of $16.03 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.43, a P/E/G ratio of 3.09 and a beta of 0.88. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a current ratio of 0.97. The business has a 50 day moving average of $133.01 and a 200-day moving average of $132.69. Quest Diagnostics Incorporated has a 52-week low of $119.59 and a 52-week high of $145.58.

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

Quest Diagnostics Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, July 22nd. Shareholders of record on Monday, July 8th will be given a $0.75 dividend. This represents a $3.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.08%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, July 8th. Quest Diagnostics's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 38.22%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

DGX has been the topic of several analyst reports. UBS Group upped 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. SVB Leerink initiated coverage on Quest Diagnostics in a research report on Monday, February 26th. They set a "market perform" rating and a $135.00 price objective on the stock. StockNews.com downgraded Quest Diagnostics from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, May 3rd. Leerink Partnrs reaffirmed a "market perform" rating on shares of Quest Diagnostics in a report on Monday, February 26th. Finally, Citigroup lifted their price target on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $135.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 24th. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $146.17.

Quest Diagnostics 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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