Catherine T. Doherty Sells 5,370 Shares of Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX) Stock

Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX) EVP Catherine T. Doherty sold 5,370 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $174.13, for a total transaction of $935,078.10. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 68,068 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,852,680.84. This trade represents a 7.31 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink.

Quest Diagnostics Trading Up 2.2 %

Shares of DGX stock opened at $175.49 on Monday. The stock has a market capitalization of $19.48 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.82, a P/E/G ratio of 2.16 and a beta of 0.92. The company has a current ratio of 1.10, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.82. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $161.74 and its 200 day moving average is $157.63. Quest Diagnostics Incorporated has a 12-month low of $125.09 and a 12-month high of $178.09.

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

Quest Diagnostics Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 21st. Stockholders 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 represents a $3.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.82%. This is a positive change from Quest Diagnostics’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.75. Quest Diagnostics’s dividend payout ratio is presently 41.61%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

DGX has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Jefferies Financial Group reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $185.00 price target (up from $175.00) on shares of Quest Diagnostics in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. Truist Financial boosted their target price on Quest Diagnostics from $172.00 to $182.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Piper Sandler restated a “neutral” rating and set a $180.00 price target (up from $165.00) on shares of Quest Diagnostics in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Mizuho upped their price target on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $177.00 to $178.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, UBS Group raised their price objective on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $166.00 to $170.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Quest Diagnostics has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $178.23.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Quest Diagnostics

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in DGX. Sierra Ocean LLC purchased a new stake in Quest Diagnostics during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Versant Capital Management Inc grew 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 period. First Financial Corp IN bought a new stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics during the 4th quarter valued at $38,000. FPC Investment Advisory Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics in the 4th quarter worth $45,000. Finally, Global Trust Asset Management LLC bought a new position in Quest Diagnostics in the 4th quarter worth $49,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 88.06% 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.