Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX) Given Average Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by Analysts

Shares of Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX) have received a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the fourteen ratings firms that are currently covering the firm, Marketbeat reports. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, five have given a buy recommendation and one has given a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 12 month price target among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $164.58.

DGX has been the subject of several recent research reports. Evercore ISI initiated coverage on Quest Diagnostics in a research report on Wednesday, August 28th. They issued an “in-line” rating and a $165.00 price target for the company. UBS Group upped their price objective on Quest Diagnostics from $165.00 to $166.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Robert W. Baird raised Quest Diagnostics from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and boosted their target price for the company from $157.00 to $182.00 in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Mizuho boosted their target price on Quest Diagnostics from $160.00 to $174.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Finally, Piper Sandler upped their price target on Quest Diagnostics from $150.00 to $165.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, October 28th.

Quest Diagnostics Stock Performance

Shares of DGX opened at $161.94 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $18.07 billion, a PE ratio of 21.77, a PEG ratio of 2.79 and a beta of 0.89. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $155.95 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $149.54. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.83, a current ratio of 1.25 and a quick ratio of 1.17. Quest Diagnostics has a 1 year low of $123.04 and a 1 year high of $165.32.

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

Quest Diagnostics Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 29th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, January 14th will be given a $0.75 dividend. This represents a $3.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.85%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, January 14th. Quest Diagnostics’s dividend payout ratio is currently 40.32%.

Insider Transactions at Quest Diagnostics

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

Institutional Trading of Quest Diagnostics

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Avestar Capital LLC boosted its stake in Quest Diagnostics by 1.1% during the 3rd quarter. Avestar Capital LLC now owns 6,288 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $976,000 after purchasing an additional 71 shares during the last quarter. Legacy Financial Advisors Inc. boosted its stake in Quest Diagnostics by 1.6% during the 2nd quarter. Legacy Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 4,697 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $643,000 after purchasing an additional 72 shares during the last quarter. Empirical Finance LLC boosted its stake in Quest Diagnostics by 2.0% during the 3rd quarter. Empirical Finance LLC now owns 3,948 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $613,000 after purchasing an additional 76 shares during the last quarter. Meeder Advisory Services Inc. boosted its stake in Quest Diagnostics by 4.9% during the 2nd quarter. Meeder Advisory Services Inc. now owns 1,795 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $246,000 after purchasing an additional 84 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Raymond James Trust N.A. lifted its holdings in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 3.5% during the 3rd quarter. Raymond James Trust N.A. now owns 2,572 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $399,000 after buying an additional 88 shares during the period. 88.06% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.