Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX) Issues FY 2024 Earnings Guidance

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX) issued an update on its FY 2024 earnings guidance on Tuesday morning. The company provided EPS guidance of 8.720-8.970 for the period, compared to the consensus EPS estimate of 8.750. The company issued revenue guidance of $9.4 billion-$9.5 billion, compared to the consensus revenue estimate of $9.4 billion. Quest Diagnostics also updated its FY24 guidance to $8.72-$8.97 EPS.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on DGX. TheStreet lowered Quest Diagnostics from a b- rating to a c rating in a research note on Monday, February 5th. StockNews.com downgraded Quest Diagnostics from a buy rating to a hold rating in a report on Wednesday, April 17th. Truist Financial reissued a hold rating and issued a $145.00 price target on shares of Quest Diagnostics in a report on Wednesday, March 20th. Jefferies Financial Group raised Quest Diagnostics from a hold rating to a buy rating and raised their price target for the stock from $140.00 to $155.00 in a report on Wednesday, February 7th. Finally, SVB Leerink started coverage on Quest Diagnostics in a report on Monday, February 26th. They issued a market perform rating and a $135.00 price target on the stock. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of Hold and an average target price of $144.18.

Quest Diagnostics Stock Up 4.4 %

Shares of DGX stock traded up $5.72 on Tuesday, reaching $135.81. 509,104 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,036,864. Quest Diagnostics has a 12-month low of $119.59 and a 12-month high of $148.62. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70, a quick ratio of 1.20 and a current ratio of 1.31. The company has a market capitalization of $15.08 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.37, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.77 and a beta of 0.91. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $128.32 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $130.95.

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 1st. The medical research company reported $2.15 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.11 by $0.04. Quest Diagnostics had a return on equity of 15.79% and a net margin of 9.23%. The business had revenue of $2.29 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.25 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.98 earnings per share. Quest Diagnostics’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts forecast that Quest Diagnostics will post 8.75 earnings per share for the current year.

Quest Diagnostics Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 22nd. Investors of record on Monday, April 8th were given a dividend of $0.75 per share. This is a boost from Quest Diagnostics’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.71. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, April 5th. This represents a $3.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.21%. Quest Diagnostics’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 37.92%.

Insider Activity at Quest Diagnostics

In related news, SVP Michael E. Prevoznik sold 5,611 shares of Quest Diagnostics stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $125.88, for a total transaction of $706,312.68. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 38,478 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,843,610.64. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other news, EVP Catherine T. Doherty sold 5,557 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $126.57, for a total value of $703,349.49. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 69,599 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,809,145.43. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Michael E. Prevoznik sold 5,611 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $125.88, for a total value of $706,312.68. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 38,478 shares in the company, valued at $4,843,610.64. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 15,150 shares of company stock valued at $1,913,202. Insiders own 0.79% 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.