Meridian Wealth Management LLC Sells 234 Shares of Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX)

Meridian Wealth Management LLC cut its stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX) by 6.7% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 3,276 shares of the medical research company’s stock after selling 234 shares during the period. Meridian Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Quest Diagnostics were worth $494,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Landscape Capital Management L.L.C. bought a new stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics during the third quarter valued at about $1,363,000. Sanctuary Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 85.5% during the third quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC now owns 17,969 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $2,940,000 after buying an additional 8,282 shares during the period. Natixis Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 7.7% during the third quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC now owns 92,830 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $14,412,000 after buying an additional 6,619 shares during the period. BankPlus Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Quest Diagnostics during the fourth quarter worth about $355,000. Finally, Van ECK Associates Corp grew its holdings in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 980.3% during the fourth quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 24,198 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $3,650,000 after purchasing an additional 21,958 shares in the last quarter. 88.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Quest Diagnostics Stock Performance

Shares of DGX stock opened at $171.79 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.82, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a current ratio of 1.10. Quest Diagnostics Incorporated has a fifty-two week low of $124.25 and a fifty-two week high of $178.09. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $160.91 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $157.29. The company has a market capitalization of $19.06 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.34, a PEG ratio of 2.16 and a beta of 0.92.

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX) last announced its quarterly earnings data 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 return on equity of 15.07% and a net margin of 8.80%. Analysts expect that Quest Diagnostics Incorporated will post 9.7 earnings per share for the current year.

Quest Diagnostics Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 21st. Shareholders of record on Monday, April 7th will be given a $0.80 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, April 7th. This represents a $3.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.86%. This is an increase from Quest Diagnostics’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.75. Quest Diagnostics’s payout ratio is presently 41.61%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

DGX has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. StockNews.com lowered Quest Diagnostics from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Truist Financial boosted their price objective on Quest Diagnostics from $172.00 to $182.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on Quest Diagnostics from $173.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. Mizuho boosted their price objective on Quest Diagnostics from $177.00 to $178.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, Robert W. Baird set a $189.00 price objective on Quest Diagnostics in a report on Friday, January 31st. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $178.23.

Insider Buying and Selling at Quest Diagnostics

In related news, Director Vicky B. Gregg sold 1,250 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $164.57, for a total transaction of $205,712.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 16,867 shares in the company, valued at $2,775,802.19. This represents a 6.90 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Mark E. Delaney sold 403 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $164.30, for a total value of $66,212.90. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 4,624 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $759,723.20. This represents a 8.02 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 4,144 shares of company stock worth $699,367. 0.79% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.