Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX) Shares Acquired by Brandes Investment Partners LP

Brandes Investment Partners LP increased its position in shares of Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX) by 38.8% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 8,297 shares of the medical research company’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,320 shares during the period. Brandes Investment Partners LP’s holdings in Quest Diagnostics were worth $1,136,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Rothschild Investment LLC acquired a new position in shares of Quest Diagnostics during the 2nd quarter worth about $26,000. Spartan Planning & Wealth Management purchased a new stake in Quest Diagnostics during the fourth quarter worth approximately $31,000. Innealta Capital LLC acquired a new position in Quest Diagnostics in the second quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Larson Financial Group LLC increased its stake in Quest Diagnostics by 77.5% in the second quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 229 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Riverview Trust Co acquired a new stake in Quest Diagnostics during the first quarter worth approximately $33,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 88.06% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on DGX. Truist Financial upped their target price on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $150.00 to $158.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, July 15th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Quest Diagnostics from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 23rd. Piper Sandler lifted their target price on Quest Diagnostics from $145.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, July 29th. Evercore ISI assumed coverage on Quest Diagnostics in a research report on Wednesday, August 28th. They issued an “in-line” rating and a $165.00 target price for the company. Finally, Barclays raised 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. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Quest Diagnostics currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $154.33.

Quest Diagnostics Trading Up 0.3 %

Shares of DGX stock opened at $155.25 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $17.25 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.90, a price-to-earnings-growth 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. The business’s 50 day moving average is $151.29 and its two-hundred day moving average is $141.97. Quest Diagnostics Incorporated has a twelve month low of $119.59 and a twelve month high of $159.36.

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

Quest Diagnostics Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, October 21st. Investors 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 yield of 1.93%. Quest Diagnostics’s payout ratio is currently 40.38%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Quest Diagnostics

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

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.