Quest Diagnostics' (DGX) "Neutral" Rating Reiterated at Robert W. Baird

Key Points

• Quest Diagnostics' stock received a neutral rating reaffirmed by Robert W. Baird, with a price target of $194.00, indicating a potential upside of approximately 7.72%.
• Recent earnings indicated a profit of $2.62 EPS, exceeding estimates, with a quarterly revenue of $2.76 billion, which marked a 15.2% increase year-over-year.
• Insider transactions revealed significant sales, with senior vice president Patrick Plewman selling 4,532 shares for approximately $829,356, marking a decrease in ownership by over 20%.

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX - Get Free Report)'s stock had its "neutral" rating reaffirmed by stock analysts at Robert W. Baird in a research report issued to clients and investors on Monday, MarketBeat.com reports. They currently have a $194.00 price target on the medical research company's stock. Robert W. Baird's price objective would indicate a potential upside of 6.70% from the company's previous close.

DGX has been the subject of several other reports. Evercore ISI set a $185.00 price target on Quest Diagnostics in a research report on Wednesday, July 23rd. UBS Group reduced their price target on Quest Diagnostics from $176.00 to $175.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, July 18th. William Blair reissued an "outperform" rating on shares of Quest Diagnostics in a research report on Wednesday, July 23rd. Truist Financial boosted their price target on Quest Diagnostics from $190.00 to $192.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 23rd. Finally, Piper Sandler boosted their price target on Quest Diagnostics from $180.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Monday, April 28th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have issued a Buy rating and ten have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $186.00.

Quest Diagnostics Stock Up 1.5%

Shares of Quest Diagnostics stock traded up $2.61 during trading on Monday, hitting $181.81. 731,481 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,152,417. The firm has a market cap of $20.33 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.77, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.39 and a beta of 0.46. The company has a current ratio of 1.09, a quick ratio of 0.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71. Quest Diagnostics has a 52-week low of $146.17 and a 52-week high of $185.62. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $175.04 and its 200 day simple moving average is $172.87.

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 22nd. The medical research company reported $2.62 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.57 by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $2.76 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.73 billion. Quest Diagnostics had a return on equity of 15.24% and a net margin of 9.01%.The business's revenue for the quarter was up 15.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $2.35 earnings per share. Quest Diagnostics has set its FY 2025 guidance at 9.630-9.830 EPS. On average, equities analysts predict that Quest Diagnostics will post 9.7 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other Quest Diagnostics news, SVP Patrick Plewman sold 1,975 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $185.00, for a total transaction of $365,375.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president owned 15,269 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,824,765. The trade was a 11.45% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, SVP Karthik Kuppusamy sold 2,210 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $170.00, for a total value of $375,700.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president owned 8,450 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,436,500. The trade was a 20.73% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 24,496 shares of company stock worth $4,278,787. Company insiders own 8.16% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Quest Diagnostics

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 126.9% in the second quarter. Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. now owns 152 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 85 shares during the last quarter. MTM Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics in the second quarter worth about $29,000. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC boosted its stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 57.8% in the first quarter. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC now owns 183 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 67 shares during the last quarter. AlphaQuest LLC boosted its stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 18,400.0% in the second quarter. AlphaQuest LLC now owns 185 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 184 shares during the last quarter. Finally, First Horizon Advisors Inc. boosted its position in Quest Diagnostics by 76.6% during the first quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 189 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 82 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.