Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd Raises Holdings in Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX)

Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd raised its position in shares of Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX) by 2.4% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 12,339 shares of the medical research company’s stock after acquiring an additional 289 shares during the period. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd’s holdings in Quest Diagnostics were worth $1,916,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Rothschild Investment LLC acquired a new stake in Quest Diagnostics during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $26,000. Innealta Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics in the second quarter worth $31,000. Larson Financial Group LLC raised its stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 77.5% in the 2nd quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 229 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares during the period. Riverview Trust Co acquired a new position in shares of Quest Diagnostics during the 1st quarter valued at $33,000. Finally, TruNorth Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in Quest Diagnostics during the 2nd quarter worth $33,000. 88.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In related news, SVP Mark E. Delaney sold 420 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $143.08, for a total value of $60,093.60. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 5,019 shares in the company, valued at $718,118.52. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In related news, SVP Karthik Kuppusamy sold 1,990 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $153.26, for a total value of $304,987.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 11,459 shares in the company, valued at $1,756,206.34. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, SVP Mark E. Delaney sold 420 shares of the business’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 sale, the senior vice president now owns 5,019 shares in the company, valued at $718,118.52. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.79% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have commented on the company. Robert W. Baird boosted their price objective on Quest Diagnostics from $153.00 to $154.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 24th. StockNews.com upgraded Quest Diagnostics from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 15th. Citigroup upgraded shares of Quest Diagnostics from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $145.00 to $165.00 in a research note on Wednesday, July 10th. Piper Sandler upped their target price on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $145.00 to $150.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, July 29th. Finally, Barclays lifted their price target on shares of 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 assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Quest Diagnostics presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $154.92.

Quest Diagnostics Trading Down 1.5 %

NYSE:DGX opened at $147.40 on Tuesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $16.37 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.84, a P/E/G ratio of 2.45 and a beta of 0.89. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $152.60 and a 200 day simple moving average of $144.20. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57, a current ratio of 1.00 and a quick ratio of 0.91. Quest Diagnostics Incorporated has a 12-month low of $120.87 and a 12-month high of $159.36.

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 23rd. The medical research company reported $2.35 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.31 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $2.40 billion during 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%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 2.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.30 earnings per share. Equities research analysts predict that Quest Diagnostics Incorporated will post 8.89 EPS for the current year.

Quest Diagnostics Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, October 21st. Shareholders of record on Friday, October 4th were paid a $0.75 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, October 4th. This represents a $3.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.04%. Quest Diagnostics’s payout ratio is currently 40.38%.

Quest Diagnostics Profile

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.