Q2 EPS Forecast for Quest Diagnostics Decreased by Analyst

Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX) – Stock analysts at Leerink Partnrs reduced their Q2 2025 earnings per share estimates for Quest Diagnostics in a report issued on Friday, April 4th. Leerink Partnrs analyst M. Cherny now expects that the medical research company will earn $2.58 per share for the quarter, down from their previous estimate of $2.59. Leerink Partnrs has a “Strong-Buy” rating on the stock. The consensus estimate for Quest Diagnostics’ current full-year earnings is $9.70 per share. Leerink Partnrs also issued estimates for Quest Diagnostics’ Q3 2025 earnings at $2.54 EPS.

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The medical research company reported $2.23 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.19 by $0.04. Quest Diagnostics had a return on equity of 15.07% and a net margin of 8.80%.

Several other equities research analysts also recently issued reports on DGX. Leerink Partners upgraded Quest Diagnostics from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and increased their target price for the stock from $169.00 to $174.00 in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Barclays raised their target price on Quest Diagnostics from $168.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. UBS Group increased their price target on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $166.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $173.00 to $180.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $185.00 target price (up previously from $175.00) on shares of Quest Diagnostics in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $179.57.

Quest Diagnostics Stock Performance

Shares of DGX stock opened at $164.08 on Monday. Quest Diagnostics has a 12 month low of $125.42 and a 12 month high of $178.87. The stock has a market capitalization of $18.21 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.34, a PEG ratio of 2.16 and a beta of 0.78. The company has a current ratio of 1.10, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.82. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $168.21 and its 200 day moving average is $159.55.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD lifted its stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 42.5% in the 4th quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 5,490,278 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $828,265,000 after acquiring an additional 1,637,525 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Quest Diagnostics in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $191,823,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 60.4% during the fourth quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 2,433,913 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $367,180,000 after purchasing an additional 916,898 shares during the period. Alliancebernstein L.P. boosted its stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 83.7% during the fourth quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 1,093,042 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $164,896,000 after purchasing an additional 497,995 shares during the period. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new position in shares of Quest Diagnostics in the fourth quarter worth approximately $67,447,000. 88.06% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, SVP Mark E. Delaney sold 403 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $164.30, for a total transaction of $66,212.90. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 4,624 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $759,723.20. This trade represents a 8.02 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Catherine T. Doherty sold 535 shares of Quest Diagnostics stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $169.71, for a total transaction of $90,794.85. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 71,356 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,109,826.76. The trade was a 0.74 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 55,903 shares of company stock valued at $9,460,221 over the last 90 days. Insiders own 0.79% of the company’s stock.

Quest Diagnostics Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 21st. Investors of record on Monday, April 7th will be paid a $0.80 dividend. This represents a $3.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.95%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, April 7th. This is a boost from Quest Diagnostics’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.75. Quest Diagnostics’s dividend payout ratio is currently 41.61%.

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.