Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX) Short Interest Update

Key Points

• Short interest in Quest Diagnostics fell 14.9% in April to 3,551,568 shares (about 3.5% of the float), leaving a days-to-cover ratio of 4.6.
• Quest beat expectations for the quarter with $2.50 EPS (vs. $2.37 est.) and $2.90B revenue (vs. $2.83B est.), and set FY2026 guidance of $10.63–$10.83 EPS versus analyst expectations around $10.71.
• The Board approved a $1.0 billion share buyback (up to 4.7% of shares) and raised the quarterly dividend to $0.86 ($3.44 annualized, ~1.8% yield).

Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX - Get Free Report) was the recipient of a large drop in short interest in the month of April. As of April 15th, there was short interest totaling 3,551,568 shares, a drop of 14.9% from the March 31st total of 4,174,813 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 771,838 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 4.6 days. Currently, 3.5% of the shares of the stock are sold short.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have weighed in on DGX shares. Barclays raised their price objective on Quest Diagnostics from $225.00 to $230.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 22nd. Mizuho raised their price objective on Quest Diagnostics from $210.00 to $235.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, February 12th. Jefferies Financial Group restated a "buy" rating and issued a $225.00 price objective on shares of Quest Diagnostics in a report on Tuesday, April 21st. Evercore set a $225.00 price target on Quest Diagnostics in a report on Tuesday, April 21st. Finally, UBS Group lifted their price target on Quest Diagnostics from $210.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 22nd. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $214.54.

Insider Activity at Quest Diagnostics

In related news, EVP Catherine T. Doherty sold 5,558 shares of Quest Diagnostics stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $206.21, for a total value of $1,146,115.18. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 67,122 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $13,841,227.62. This trade represents a 7.65% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, SVP Karthik Kuppusamy sold 2,628 shares of Quest Diagnostics stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $204.86, for a total transaction of $538,372.08. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 13,441 shares in the company, valued at $2,753,523.26. This represents a 16.35% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold a total of 24,083 shares of company stock worth $4,945,262 over the last 90 days. 0.88% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Quest Diagnostics

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Quest Diagnostics by 3.7% during the fourth quarter. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC now owns 1,387 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $241,000 after acquiring an additional 50 shares in the last quarter. Perigon Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 4.5% in the 3rd quarter. Perigon Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,275 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $243,000 after purchasing an additional 55 shares during the period. HB Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 0.5% in the 4th quarter. HB Wealth Management LLC now owns 11,292 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $1,960,000 after purchasing an additional 58 shares during the period. Independent Advisor Alliance raised its stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 1.4% in the 3rd quarter. Independent Advisor Alliance now owns 4,232 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $807,000 after purchasing an additional 59 shares during the period. Finally, Ossiam raised its stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 6.1% in the 3rd quarter. Ossiam now owns 1,059 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $202,000 after purchasing an additional 61 shares during the period. 88.06% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Quest Diagnostics Trading Down 0.9%

Shares of NYSE DGX traded down $1.71 during trading on Friday, hitting $192.50. 691,959 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,008,691. Quest Diagnostics has a 12-month low of $164.65 and a 12-month high of $213.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67, a quick ratio of 1.08 and a current ratio of 1.18. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $199.17 and a 200-day moving average price of $189.64. The firm has a market capitalization of $21.31 billion, a PE ratio of 21.27, a P/E/G ratio of 2.26 and a beta of 0.66.

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 21st. The medical research company reported $2.50 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.37 by $0.13. The business had revenue of $2.90 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.83 billion. Quest Diagnostics had a return on equity of 15.60% and a net margin of 9.07%.The company's quarterly revenue was up 9.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.94 EPS. Quest Diagnostics has set its FY 2026 guidance at 10.630-10.830 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Quest Diagnostics will post 10.71 EPS for the current year.

Quest Diagnostics declared that its Board of Directors has approved a share buyback program on Tuesday, February 10th that authorizes the company to buyback $1.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the medical research company to purchase up to 4.7% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are typically an indication that the company's board believes its stock is undervalued.

Quest Diagnostics Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 20th. Shareholders of record on Monday, April 6th were given a $0.86 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, April 6th. This represents a $3.44 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.8%. This is an increase from Quest Diagnostics's previous quarterly dividend of $0.80. Quest Diagnostics's dividend payout ratio is presently 38.01%.

Quest Diagnostics Company Profile

Quest Diagnostics NYSE: DGX is a leading provider of diagnostic information services that supports clinical decision-making for patients, physicians and healthcare organizations. The company operates a network of clinical laboratories and patient service centers that perform a broad range of laboratory tests and diagnostic assays used in routine care, disease diagnosis, monitoring and screening.

Its services span core clinical laboratory testing, anatomic pathology, molecular and genomic diagnostics, infectious disease testing and toxicology.

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