Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX) Upgraded to “Overweight” at Morgan Stanley

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX) was upgraded by investment analysts at Morgan Stanley from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating in a report released on Tuesday, Marketbeat reports. The brokerage presently has a $172.00 price objective on the medical research company’s stock, up from their prior price objective of $145.00. Morgan Stanley’s target price indicates a potential upside of 13.72% from the company’s current price.

Other equities analysts have also issued reports about the stock. Mizuho upped their target price on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $160.00 to $174.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. Barclays increased their price objective on Quest Diagnostics from $154.00 to $168.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Evercore ISI initiated coverage on Quest Diagnostics in a research note on Wednesday, August 28th. They set an “in-line” rating and a $165.00 price target on the stock. Baird R W upgraded Quest Diagnostics from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded shares of Quest Diagnostics from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, November 18th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $169.15.

Quest Diagnostics Stock Performance

NYSE:DGX opened at $151.25 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $16.88 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.33, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.69 and a beta of 0.89. Quest Diagnostics has a 1 year low of $123.04 and a 1 year high of $165.32. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $156.86 and a 200-day moving average of $150.65. The company has a current ratio of 1.25, a quick ratio of 1.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.83.

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 22nd. The medical research company reported $2.30 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.26 by $0.04. Quest Diagnostics had a return on equity of 15.25% and a net margin of 8.82%. The company had revenue of $2.49 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.43 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $2.22 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 8.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Quest Diagnostics will post 8.9 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Quest Diagnostics news, CAO Michael J. Deppe sold 18,755 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $154.05, for a total transaction of $2,889,207.75. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 34,941 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,382,661.05. This trade represents a 34.93 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, SVP Karthik Kuppusamy sold 1,775 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, October 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $156.92, for a total transaction of $278,533.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 9,734 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,527,459.28. This trade represents a 15.42 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.79% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Quest Diagnostics

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in DGX. Rothschild Investment LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics in the 2nd quarter valued at about $26,000. Larson Financial Group LLC raised its position in 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 buying an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. Innealta Capital LLC bought a new stake in Quest Diagnostics in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $31,000. EdgeRock Capital LLC bought a new position in shares of Quest Diagnostics during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $35,000. Finally, Sunbelt Securities Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics in the second quarter valued at approximately $40,000. 88.06% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Quest Diagnostics Company 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.