Madison Investment Advisors LLC Makes New $1.18 Million Investment in Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX)

Madison Investment Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor bought 7,817 shares of the medical research company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,179,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in DGX. Sierra Ocean LLC bought a new position in Quest Diagnostics during the 4th quarter worth about $33,000. Versant Capital Management Inc grew its holdings in Quest Diagnostics by 340.4% during the 4th quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 251 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $38,000 after acquiring an additional 194 shares in the last quarter. First Financial Corp IN bought a new position in Quest Diagnostics during the 4th quarter worth about $38,000. FPC Investment Advisory Inc. bought a new position in Quest Diagnostics during the 4th quarter worth about $45,000. Finally, Global Trust Asset Management LLC bought a new position in Quest Diagnostics during the 4th quarter worth about $49,000. 88.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have commented on DGX shares. Piper Sandler reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $180.00 price target (up from $165.00) on shares of Quest Diagnostics in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Leerink Partnrs raised shares of Quest Diagnostics from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, January 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $173.00 to $180.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Leerink Partners raised shares of Quest Diagnostics from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and increased their price target for the company from $169.00 to $174.00 in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised shares of Quest Diagnostics from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their price target for the company from $145.00 to $172.00 in a research report on Tuesday, December 17th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $178.38.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Quest Diagnostics news, SVP Michael E. Prevoznik sold 4,643 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $170.00, for a total transaction of $789,310.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 38,117 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,479,890. This trade represents a 10.86 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Catherine T. Doherty sold 5,370 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $174.13, for a total transaction of $935,078.10. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 68,068 shares in the company, valued at $11,852,680.84. The trade was a 7.31 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 14,157 shares of company stock valued at $2,423,755. 0.79% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Quest Diagnostics Stock Performance

Shares of Quest Diagnostics stock opened at $166.96 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $18.53 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.71, a PEG ratio of 2.16 and a beta of 0.92. The company has a quick ratio of 1.02, a current ratio of 1.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.82. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $165.18 and a 200 day moving average price of $158.60. Quest Diagnostics Incorporated has a 52 week low of $125.42 and a 52 week high of $178.87.

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The medical research company reported $2.23 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.19 by $0.04. Quest Diagnostics had a net margin of 8.80% and a return on equity of 15.07%. Sell-side analysts expect that Quest Diagnostics Incorporated will post 9.7 EPS for the current year.

Quest Diagnostics Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 21st. Shareholders of record on Monday, April 7th will be given a dividend of $0.80 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, April 7th. This is a positive change from Quest Diagnostics’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.75. This represents a $3.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.92%. Quest Diagnostics’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 41.61%.

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.