Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX) Announces Earnings Results, Beats Expectations By $0.13 EPS

Key Points

• Quest Diagnostics reported $2.50 EPS for the quarter, beating estimates by $0.13 with revenue of $2.90 billion (vs. $2.83B expected), and updated FY2026 guidance to 10.630–10.830 EPS.
• The company raised its quarterly dividend to $0.86 (from $0.80), equal to a $3.44 annualized payout and a ~1.8% yield with a payout ratio around 39%.
• Quest's Board authorized a $1.0 billion share repurchase program (up to ~4.7% of outstanding shares), indicating management believes the stock may be undervalued.

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX - Get Free Report) announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday. The medical research company reported $2.50 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.37 by $0.13, FiscalAI reports. Quest Diagnostics had a net margin of 8.99% and a return on equity of 15.57%. The firm had revenue of $2.90 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.83 billion. Quest Diagnostics updated its FY 2026 guidance to 10.630-10.830 EPS.

Quest Diagnostics Stock Performance

Shares of DGX stock opened at $196.46 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $21.74 billion, a PE ratio of 22.45, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.52 and a beta of 0.66. Quest Diagnostics has a 52-week low of $160.02 and a 52-week high of $213.50. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $200.52 and its 200 day moving average price is $188.84. The company has a quick ratio of 0.96, a current ratio of 1.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72.

Quest Diagnostics Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 20th. Investors of record on Monday, April 6th were given a $0.86 dividend. This is a boost from Quest Diagnostics's previous quarterly dividend of $0.80. The ex-dividend date was Monday, April 6th. This represents a $3.44 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.8%. Quest Diagnostics's payout ratio is presently 39.31%.

Quest Diagnostics declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock buyback plan on Tuesday, February 10th that authorizes the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the medical research company to buy up to 4.7% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are generally a sign that the company's leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Quest Diagnostics from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Sunday, March 15th. Barclays upped their target price on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $210.00 to $225.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, February 11th. Robert W. Baird set a $219.00 target price on shares of Quest Diagnostics in a report on Wednesday, February 11th. Mizuho upped their target price on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $210.00 to $235.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, February 12th. Finally, UBS Group boosted their price target on Quest Diagnostics from $190.00 to $210.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 11th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $210.69.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, SVP Patrick Plewman sold 5,662 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $204.00, for a total transaction of $1,155,048.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 15,381 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,137,724. This represents a 26.91% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, SVP Karthik Kuppusamy sold 2,628 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $204.86, for a total transaction of $538,372.08. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 13,441 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,753,523.26. This represents a 16.35% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 24,083 shares of company stock worth $4,945,262. Insiders own 8.16% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in DGX. Brighton Jones LLC purchased a new position in Quest Diagnostics during the fourth quarter worth about $323,000. Cresset Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in Quest Diagnostics by 4.6% during the second quarter. Cresset Asset Management LLC now owns 4,003 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $719,000 after purchasing an additional 176 shares in the last quarter. Gabelli Funds LLC purchased a new position in Quest Diagnostics during the second quarter worth about $287,000. Bank of Nova Scotia raised its holdings in Quest Diagnostics by 7.2% during the second quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia now owns 14,339 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $2,576,000 after purchasing an additional 962 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Daiwa Securities Group Inc. raised its holdings in Quest Diagnostics by 17.1% during the second quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 18,599 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $3,341,000 after purchasing an additional 2,718 shares in the last quarter. 88.06% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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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