Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX) Stock Price Down 4.7% - Time to Sell?

Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX - Get Free Report) traded down 4.7% during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The company traded as low as $170.23 and last traded at $169.84. 1,060,234 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, an increase of 5% from the average session volume of 1,013,785 shares. The stock had previously closed at $178.24.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Quest Diagnostics from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, June 7th. Barclays boosted their price target on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $175.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Mizuho upped their price objective on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $178.00 to $189.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 9th. Redburn Partners set a $195.00 price target on shares of Quest Diagnostics in a report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Finally, Truist Financial upped their price objective on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $190.00 to $192.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $185.69.

Quest Diagnostics Price Performance

The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $174.51 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $169.72. The company has a market cap of $18.83 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.16, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.24 and a beta of 0.49. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71, a current ratio of 1.09 and a quick ratio of 0.99.

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 22nd. The medical research company reported $2.62 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.57 by $0.05. The company 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%. Quest Diagnostics's revenue for the quarter was up 15.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $2.35 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that Quest Diagnostics Incorporated will post 9.7 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Quest Diagnostics Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, July 21st. Stockholders of record on Monday, July 7th were issued a $0.80 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, July 7th. This represents a $3.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.90%. Quest Diagnostics's payout ratio is currently 38.32%.

Insider Activity at Quest Diagnostics

In related news, SVP Mark E. Delaney sold 874 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $175.72, for a total transaction of $153,579.28. Following the transaction, the senior vice president owned 8,372 shares in the company, valued at $1,471,127.84. This trade represents a 9.45% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders own 8.16% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Boston Partners purchased a new stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics in the first quarter valued at approximately $388,724,000. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD boosted its stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 42.5% in the fourth quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 5,490,278 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $828,265,000 after buying an additional 1,637,525 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $191,823,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 60.4% in the fourth quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 2,433,913 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $367,180,000 after buying an additional 916,898 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Alliancebernstein L.P. boosted its stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 83.7% in the fourth quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 1,093,042 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $164,896,000 after buying an additional 497,995 shares in the last quarter. 88.06% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.