Mutual Advisors LLC Takes $221,000 Position in Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX)

Mutual Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 1,460 shares of the medical research company’s stock, valued at approximately $221,000.

Several other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Versant Capital Management Inc raised its position in Quest Diagnostics by 340.4% during the fourth quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 251 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $38,000 after purchasing an additional 194 shares in the last quarter. First Financial Corp IN bought a new stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics in the fourth quarter worth about $38,000. Sunbelt Securities Inc. purchased a new position in Quest Diagnostics during the 2nd quarter valued at $40,000. Global Trust Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $49,000. Finally, Sentry Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics in the 3rd quarter worth about $82,000. 88.06% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In related news, CAO Michael J. Deppe sold 18,755 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $154.05, for a total transaction of $2,889,207.75. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 34,941 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,382,661.05. This trade represents a 34.93 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Company insiders own 0.79% of the company’s stock.

Quest Diagnostics Trading Down 1.7 %

Quest Diagnostics stock opened at $157.29 on Wednesday. Quest Diagnostics Incorporated has a 12 month low of $123.04 and a 12 month high of $165.32. The company has a current ratio of 1.25, a quick ratio of 1.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.83. The firm has a market cap of $17.55 billion, a PE ratio of 21.14, a P/E/G ratio of 2.36 and a beta of 0.90. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $155.54 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $153.42.

Quest Diagnostics Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 29th. Investors of record on Tuesday, January 14th will be issued a $0.75 dividend. This represents a $3.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.91%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, January 14th. Quest Diagnostics’s payout ratio is presently 40.32%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Robert W. Baird upgraded shares of Quest Diagnostics from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and boosted their price objective for the stock from $157.00 to $182.00 in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Leerink Partnrs upgraded Quest Diagnostics from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, January 6th. Barclays boosted their price objective on Quest Diagnostics from $154.00 to $168.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. UBS Group raised their price target on Quest Diagnostics from $165.00 to $166.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Finally, Truist Financial upped their price objective on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $158.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, October 7th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Quest Diagnostics presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $172.15.

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.