Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX) Stock Position Reduced by Elo Mutual Pension Insurance Co

Elo Mutual Pension Insurance Co decreased its stake in Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX) by 1.9% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 10,078 shares of the medical research company’s stock after selling 195 shares during the quarter. Elo Mutual Pension Insurance Co’s holdings in Quest Diagnostics were worth $1,379,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of DGX. State of Alaska Department of Revenue raised its holdings in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 50.9% during the first quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue now owns 41,796 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $5,562,000 after acquiring an additional 14,090 shares in the last quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company raised its stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 5.8% during the 4th quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 135,148 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $18,634,000 after purchasing an additional 7,415 shares in the last quarter. Scarborough Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics during the 4th quarter valued at about $1,562,000. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. grew its stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 16.5% in the 1st quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 131,329 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $17,481,000 after buying an additional 18,642 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in Quest Diagnostics by 2.5% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 13,921,955 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $1,853,151,000 after buying an additional 345,754 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 88.06% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Quest Diagnostics

In related news, SVP Mark E. Delaney sold 420 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $143.08, for a total value of $60,093.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 5,019 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $718,118.52. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other Quest Diagnostics news, SVP Mark E. Delaney sold 420 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $143.08, for a total value of $60,093.60. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 5,019 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $718,118.52. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, SVP Karthik Kuppusamy sold 1,990 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $153.26, for a total transaction of $304,987.40. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 11,459 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,756,206.34. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.79% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have commented on DGX shares. Truist Financial boosted their target price on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $150.00 to $158.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, July 15th. Evercore ISI started coverage on shares of Quest Diagnostics in a report on Wednesday, August 28th. They issued an “in-line” rating and a $165.00 price objective for the company. StockNews.com upgraded Quest Diagnostics from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 23rd. Barclays upped their price target on Quest Diagnostics from $144.00 to $154.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 27th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on Quest Diagnostics from $152.00 to $155.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 30th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $154.33.

Quest Diagnostics Trading Down 1.4 %

Shares of Quest Diagnostics stock opened at $152.99 on Friday. Quest Diagnostics Incorporated has a 1 year low of $119.59 and a 1 year high of $159.36. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $150.61 and its 200-day simple moving average is $140.88. The company has a market cap of $17.00 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.59, a PEG ratio of 2.80 and a beta of 0.89. The company has a current ratio of 1.00, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57.

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 23rd. The medical research company reported $2.35 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.31 by $0.04. Quest Diagnostics had a net margin of 8.99% and a return on equity of 15.35%. The company had revenue of $2.40 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.39 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $2.30 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 2.5% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Quest Diagnostics Incorporated will post 8.89 EPS for the current year.

Quest Diagnostics Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, October 21st. Shareholders of record on Friday, October 4th will be given a $0.75 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 4th. This represents a $3.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.96%. Quest Diagnostics’s dividend payout ratio is currently 40.38%.

Quest Diagnostics 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.