Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX) Upgraded to Buy at StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research note published on Tuesday morning.

Several other research analysts have also recently issued reports on the company. Barclays increased their price objective on Quest Diagnostics from $144.00 to $154.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 27th. Piper Sandler upped their price target on Quest Diagnostics from $145.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, July 29th. Evercore ISI assumed coverage on shares of Quest Diagnostics in a research note on Wednesday, August 28th. They issued an “in-line” rating and a $165.00 price target on the stock. Robert W. Baird increased their target price on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $153.00 to $154.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 24th. Finally, Citigroup raised shares of Quest Diagnostics from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $145.00 to $165.00 in a research note on Wednesday, July 10th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $154.92.

Quest Diagnostics Price Performance

Shares of DGX opened at $149.58 on Tuesday. Quest Diagnostics has a twelve month low of $120.87 and a twelve month high of $159.36. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $152.67 and a 200 day moving average of $143.93. The company has a market capitalization of $16.62 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.13, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.45 and a beta of 0.89. The company has a quick ratio of 0.91, a current ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57.

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 23rd. The medical research company reported $2.35 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.31 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $2.40 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.39 billion. Quest Diagnostics had a net margin of 8.99% and a return on equity of 15.35%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $2.30 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Quest Diagnostics will post 8.89 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Quest Diagnostics Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, October 21st. Shareholders of record on Friday, October 4th will be issued a $0.75 dividend. This represents a $3.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.01%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 4th. Quest Diagnostics’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 40.38%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Quest Diagnostics

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

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Quest Diagnostics

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Rothschild Investment LLC bought a new position in Quest Diagnostics in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $26,000. Larson Financial Group LLC increased its position in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 77.5% during the 2nd quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 229 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. Innealta Capital LLC bought a new stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics in the 2nd quarter valued at about $31,000. TruNorth Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics during the 2nd quarter worth about $33,000. Finally, Riverview Trust Co bought a new stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics in the first quarter valued at about $33,000. 88.06% of the stock is currently 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.