Citigroup Downgrades Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX) to Neutral

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX) was downgraded by research analysts at Citigroup from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research report issued on Tuesday, MarketBeat Ratings reports. They currently have a $185.00 price objective on the medical research company’s stock. Citigroup’s price target suggests a potential upside of 7.69% from the stock’s previous close.

Other equities research analysts have also recently issued reports about the stock. Leerink Partners raised shares of Quest Diagnostics from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $169.00 to $174.00 in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Robert W. Baird set a $189.00 price objective on shares of Quest Diagnostics in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $185.00 price objective (up from $175.00) on shares of Quest Diagnostics in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. Bank of America boosted their price objective on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $179.00 to $182.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, December 13th. Finally, Mizuho boosted their price objective on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $177.00 to $178.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $178.23.

Quest Diagnostics Price Performance

Shares of DGX stock opened at $171.79 on Tuesday. Quest Diagnostics has a 12-month low of $124.25 and a 12-month high of $178.09. The firm has a market capitalization of $19.06 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.34, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.16 and a beta of 0.92. The company has a quick ratio of 1.02, a current ratio of 1.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.82. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $160.91 and a 200-day moving average of $157.29.

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

Insider Activity

In other news, SVP Michael E. Prevoznik sold 604 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $170.99, for a total value of $103,277.96. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 39,845 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,813,096.55. This represents a 1.49 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Vicky B. Gregg sold 1,250 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $164.57, for a total transaction of $205,712.50. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 16,867 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,775,802.19. The trade was a 6.90 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 4,144 shares of company stock valued at $699,367. 0.79% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Quest Diagnostics

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of DGX. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC raised its holdings in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 20.7% in the 3rd quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 16,348 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $2,538,000 after purchasing an additional 2,805 shares during the period. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. grew its stake in Quest Diagnostics by 114.9% in the 3rd quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 10,169 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $1,579,000 after buying an additional 5,436 shares during the last quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. grew its stake in Quest Diagnostics by 10.7% in the 3rd quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. now owns 124,484 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $19,326,000 after buying an additional 12,083 shares during the last quarter. Forum Financial Management LP grew its stake in Quest Diagnostics by 5.4% in the 3rd quarter. Forum Financial Management LP now owns 1,940 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $301,000 after buying an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. Finally, National Pension Service grew its stake in Quest Diagnostics by 5.1% in the 3rd quarter. National Pension Service now owns 227,831 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $35,371,000 after buying an additional 11,085 shares during the last quarter. 88.06% of the stock is owned by 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.