CNB Bank Has $576,000 Stake in Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX)

CNB Bank decreased its position in shares of Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX) by 11.0% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 3,817 shares of the medical research company’s stock after selling 471 shares during the period. CNB Bank’s holdings in Quest Diagnostics were worth $576,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of DGX. Versant Capital Management Inc raised its position in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 340.4% during the 4th quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 251 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $38,000 after acquiring an additional 194 shares during the last quarter. First Financial Corp IN acquired a new stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics during the fourth quarter worth $38,000. Sunbelt Securities Inc. bought a new stake in Quest Diagnostics in the second quarter valued at about $40,000. Quarry LP bought a new position in Quest Diagnostics during the second quarter worth about $74,000. Finally, Sentry Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $82,000. Institutional investors own 88.06% of the company’s stock.

Quest Diagnostics Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE DGX opened at $152.08 on Friday. Quest Diagnostics Incorporated has a one year low of $123.04 and a one year high of $165.32. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.83, a current ratio of 1.25 and a quick ratio of 1.17. The firm has a market cap of $16.97 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.46, a P/E/G ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 0.90. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $156.56 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $152.47.

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The medical research company reported $2.30 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.26 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $2.49 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.43 billion. Quest Diagnostics had a net margin of 8.82% and a return on equity of 15.25%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 8.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $2.22 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts forecast that Quest Diagnostics Incorporated will post 8.9 EPS for the current year.

Quest Diagnostics Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 29th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, January 14th will be given a $0.75 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, January 14th. This represents a $3.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.97%. Quest Diagnostics’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 40.32%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CAO Michael J. Deppe sold 18,755 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $154.05, for a total transaction of $2,889,207.75. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 34,941 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,382,661.05. This represents a 34.93 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, SVP Karthik Kuppusamy sold 1,775 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, October 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $156.92, for a total transaction of $278,533.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 9,734 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,527,459.28. The trade was a 15.42 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.79% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Robert W. Baird upgraded shares of Quest Diagnostics from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and upped their price target for the company from $157.00 to $182.00 in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Morgan Stanley raised Quest Diagnostics from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $145.00 to $172.00 in a research report on Tuesday, December 17th. Truist Financial increased their price target on Quest Diagnostics from $158.00 to $165.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, October 7th. Leerink Partners raised Quest Diagnostics from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $169.00 to $174.00 in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Finally, UBS Group boosted their target price on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $165.00 to $166.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $172.15.

About Quest Diagnostics

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.