Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX) EVP Sells $142,230.64 in Stock

Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX) EVP Catherine T. Doherty sold 824 shares of Quest Diagnostics stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $172.61, for a total transaction of $142,230.64. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 69,178 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,940,814.58. The trade was a 1.18 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link.

Quest Diagnostics Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:DGX traded up $1.31 during trading on Friday, hitting $172.86. 1,197,915 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,056,162. The company has a quick ratio of 1.02, a current ratio of 1.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.82. The company has a market cap of $19.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.48, a P/E/G ratio of 2.16 and a beta of 0.91. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $159.23 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $156.58. Quest Diagnostics Incorporated has a 52-week low of $123.66 and a 52-week high of $176.44.

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The medical research company reported $2.23 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.19 by $0.04. Quest Diagnostics had a net margin of 8.80% and a return on equity of 15.07%. As a group, equities analysts predict that Quest Diagnostics Incorporated will post 9.7 EPS for the current year.

Quest Diagnostics Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 21st. Investors of record on Monday, April 7th will be issued a $0.80 dividend. This represents a $3.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.85%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, April 7th. This is a positive change from Quest Diagnostics’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.75. Quest Diagnostics’s payout ratio is presently 41.61%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts recently commented on the stock. Mizuho lifted their target price on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $177.00 to $178.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Truist Financial lifted their target price on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $172.00 to $182.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $185.00 target price (up from $175.00) on shares of Quest Diagnostics in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. StockNews.com cut shares of Quest Diagnostics from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $173.00 to $180.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Quest Diagnostics currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $178.23.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Quest Diagnostics

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Sierra Ocean LLC purchased a new stake in Quest Diagnostics in the 4th quarter worth $33,000. Versant Capital Management Inc increased its holdings in Quest Diagnostics by 340.4% in the 4th quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 251 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $38,000 after acquiring an additional 194 shares in the last quarter. First Financial Corp IN purchased a new stake in Quest Diagnostics in the 4th quarter worth $38,000. FPC Investment Advisory Inc. purchased a new stake in Quest Diagnostics in the 4th quarter worth $45,000. Finally, Global Trust Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in Quest Diagnostics in the 4th quarter worth $49,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 88.06% of the company’s stock.

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.