Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX) Receives $144.18 Average Target Price from Analysts

Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX) has been assigned an average recommendation of “Hold” from the twelve research firms that are presently covering the stock, MarketBeat.com reports. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and three have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12-month target price among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $146.17.

DGX has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. SVB Leerink began coverage on shares of Quest Diagnostics in a report on Monday, February 26th. They set a “market perform” rating and a $135.00 price objective on the stock. Mizuho lifted their price objective on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $150.00 to $155.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 24th. Truist Financial boosted their target price on Quest Diagnostics from $145.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 24th. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of Quest Diagnostics from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price target for the company from $140.00 to $155.00 in a report on Wednesday, February 7th. Finally, Citigroup lifted their price objective on Quest Diagnostics from $135.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 24th.

Insider Buying and Selling

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 value of $706,312.68. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 38,478 shares in the company, valued at $4,843,610.64. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In related news, SVP Michael E. Prevoznik sold 5,611 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 29th. The shares were 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 directly owns 38,478 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,843,610.64. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Catherine T. Doherty sold 821 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $126.14, for a total value of $103,560.94. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 70,800 shares in the company, valued at $8,930,712. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 15,150 shares of company stock valued at $1,913,202. Insiders own 0.79% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Quest Diagnostics

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in DGX. Raymond James & Associates lifted its stake in Quest Diagnostics by 103.3% during the fourth quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 148,251 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $20,441,000 after purchasing an additional 75,315 shares during the last quarter. CHURCHILL MANAGEMENT Corp acquired a new stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics in the fourth quarter valued at $1,483,000. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its holdings in Quest Diagnostics by 14.6% in the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 2,613,793 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $318,517,000 after acquiring an additional 333,947 shares during the last quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. boosted its holdings in Quest Diagnostics by 201.5% during the fourth quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 31,912 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $4,400,000 after buying an additional 21,327 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Strs Ohio boosted its stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 7.6% during the 4th quarter. Strs Ohio now owns 16,270 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $2,243,000 after acquiring an additional 1,150 shares in the last quarter. 88.06% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Quest Diagnostics Stock Performance

NYSE:DGX opened at $139.54 on Tuesday. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $129.41 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $131.42. The company has a quick ratio of 0.89, a current ratio of 0.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59. Quest Diagnostics has a 52 week low of $119.59 and a 52 week high of $145.58. The company has a market cap of $15.50 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.78, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.92 and a beta of 0.91.

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 23rd. The medical research company reported $2.04 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.86 by $0.18. Quest Diagnostics had a net margin of 9.11% and a return on equity of 15.52%. The company had revenue of $2.37 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.29 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $2.04 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 1.7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Quest Diagnostics will post 8.78 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Quest Diagnostics Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced 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. The ex-dividend date was Friday, April 5th. This is an increase from Quest Diagnostics’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.71. This represents a $3.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.15%. Quest Diagnostics’s dividend payout ratio is 38.22%.

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.