Socha Financial Group LLC Boosts Stock Holdings in Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX)

Socha Financial Group LLC grew its stake in Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX) by 13.4% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 8,985 shares of the medical research company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,062 shares during the period. Quest Diagnostics makes up about 0.6% of Socha Financial Group LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 10th biggest position. Socha Financial Group LLC’s holdings in Quest Diagnostics were worth $1,239,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its position in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 36.8% during the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 2,001,347 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $243,884,000 after buying an additional 538,377 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc. grew its holdings in Quest Diagnostics by 12.3% in the third quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 3,554,517 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $433,153,000 after purchasing an additional 388,162 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its holdings in Quest Diagnostics by 14.6% in the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 2,613,793 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $318,517,000 after purchasing an additional 333,947 shares during the period. Pathstone Family Office LLC grew its holdings in Quest Diagnostics by 2,400.9% in the third quarter. Pathstone Family Office LLC now owns 336,521 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $41,008,000 after purchasing an additional 323,065 shares during the period. Finally, AEGON ASSET MANAGEMENT UK Plc purchased a new stake in Quest Diagnostics in the fourth quarter worth about $30,869,000. 88.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Quest Diagnostics Stock Up 5.1 %

NYSE DGX traded up $6.65 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $136.74. 2,088,321 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,057,877. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70, a current ratio of 1.31 and a quick ratio of 1.20. The firm has a market cap of $15.19 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.37, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.77 and a beta of 0.91. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $128.32 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $130.95. Quest Diagnostics Incorporated has a 12-month low of $119.59 and a 12-month high of $148.62.

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 1st. The medical research company reported $2.15 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.11 by $0.04. Quest Diagnostics had a net margin of 9.23% and a return on equity of 15.79%. The business had revenue of $2.29 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.25 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.98 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.9% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Quest Diagnostics Incorporated will post 8.75 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Quest Diagnostics Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 22nd. Stockholders of record on Monday, April 8th were given a $0.75 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, April 5th. This represents a $3.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.19%. This is an increase from Quest Diagnostics’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.71. Quest Diagnostics’s payout ratio is presently 37.92%.

Insider Transactions at Quest Diagnostics

In other news, Director Vicky B. Gregg sold 2,500 shares of Quest Diagnostics stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $126.64, for a total value of $316,600.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 16,329 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,067,904.56. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In related news, Director Vicky B. Gregg sold 2,500 shares of Quest Diagnostics stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $126.64, for a total value of $316,600.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 16,329 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,067,904.56. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, SVP Michael E. Prevoznik sold 661 shares of Quest Diagnostics stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $126.14, for a total transaction of $83,378.54. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 40,206 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,071,584.84. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 15,150 shares of company stock valued at $1,913,202 in the last 90 days. Insiders own 0.79% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on DGX shares. Barclays started coverage on shares of Quest Diagnostics in a report on Wednesday, January 3rd. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $145.00 price objective on the stock. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Quest Diagnostics from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 17th. TheStreet downgraded shares of Quest Diagnostics from a “b-” rating to a “c” rating in a research report on Monday, February 5th. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of Quest Diagnostics from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price objective for the company from $140.00 to $155.00 in a research report on Wednesday, February 7th. Finally, Truist Financial reaffirmed a “hold” rating and set a $145.00 target price on shares of Quest Diagnostics in a report on Wednesday, March 20th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $144.18.

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.