Hancock Whitney Corp Sells 54,083 Shares of Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX)

Hancock Whitney Corp cut its holdings in shares of Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX) by 88.1% during the 1st quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 7,328 shares of the medical research company’s stock after selling 54,083 shares during the quarter. Hancock Whitney Corp’s holdings in Quest Diagnostics were worth $975,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in DGX. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Quest Diagnostics during the fourth quarter worth approximately $140,472,000. Nuance Investments LLC purchased a new position in shares of Quest Diagnostics in the fourth quarter worth $83,070,000. M&G Plc purchased a new position in shares of Quest Diagnostics in the first quarter worth $46,432,000. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 2.5% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 13,921,955 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $1,853,151,000 after buying an additional 345,754 shares during the period. Finally, Pathstone Holdings LLC purchased a new position in shares of Quest Diagnostics in the fourth quarter worth $46,342,000. 88.06% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Quest Diagnostics Trading Up 0.4 %

DGX stock traded up $0.65 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $148.32. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 263,694 shares, compared to its average volume of 993,896. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a current ratio of 1.00. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $141.23 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $134.66. Quest Diagnostics Incorporated has a 1 year low of $119.59 and a 1 year high of $151.78. The firm has a market capitalization of $16.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.04, a PEG ratio of 2.59 and a beta of 0.89.

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, July 23rd. The medical research company reported $2.35 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.31 by $0.04. Quest Diagnostics had a return on equity of 15.35% and a net margin of 8.99%. The business had revenue of $2.40 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.39 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $2.30 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 2.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts predict that Quest Diagnostics Incorporated will post 8.89 EPS for the current year.

Quest Diagnostics Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, July 22nd. Stockholders of record on Monday, July 8th were paid a dividend of $0.75 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, July 8th. This represents a $3.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.02%. Quest Diagnostics’s dividend payout ratio is currently 40.38%.

Insider Activity

In other news, SVP Mark E. Delaney sold 420 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $143.08, for a total transaction of $60,093.60. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 5,019 shares in the company, valued at $718,118.52. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Insiders own 0.79% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages recently commented on DGX. UBS Group lifted their target price on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $139.00 to $146.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 24th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Quest Diagnostics from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 23rd. Mizuho upped their price target on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $150.00 to $155.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on Quest Diagnostics from $152.00 to $155.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 30th. Finally, Piper Sandler increased their target price on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $145.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $150.15.

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.