Geode Capital Management LLC Purchases 73,368 Shares of Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX)

Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX) by 2.8% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 2,690,021 shares of the medical research company’s stock after purchasing an additional 73,368 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC owned approximately 2.41% of Quest Diagnostics worth $404,764,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of DGX. Sierra Ocean LLC bought a new stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics in the 4th quarter worth about $33,000. Versant Capital Management Inc increased its stake in Quest Diagnostics by 340.4% during the fourth 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 during the last quarter. First Financial Corp IN purchased a new stake in Quest Diagnostics during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $38,000. FPC Investment Advisory Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $45,000. Finally, Global Trust Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Quest Diagnostics in the 4th quarter worth approximately $49,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 88.06% of the company’s stock.

Quest Diagnostics Trading Down 3.8 %

NYSE:DGX opened at $164.08 on Friday. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $168.21 and a 200-day simple moving average of $159.49. Quest Diagnostics Incorporated has a one year low of $125.42 and a one year high of $178.87. The firm has a market cap of $18.21 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.34, a P/E/G ratio of 2.16 and a beta of 0.78. 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 (NYSE:DGX) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The medical research company reported $2.23 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.19 by $0.04. Quest Diagnostics had a net margin of 8.80% and a return on equity of 15.07%. Equities analysts anticipate that Quest Diagnostics Incorporated will post 9.7 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Quest Diagnostics Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 21st. Investors of record on Monday, April 7th will be given a dividend of $0.80 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, April 7th. This represents a $3.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.95%. This is an increase from Quest Diagnostics’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.75. Quest Diagnostics’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 41.61%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Quest Diagnostics

In other Quest Diagnostics news, SVP Mark E. Delaney sold 403 shares of Quest Diagnostics stock in a transaction 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 directly owns 4,624 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $759,723.20. The trade was a 8.02 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Catherine T. Doherty sold 5,370 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $174.13, for a total value of $935,078.10. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 68,068 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,852,680.84. This represents a 7.31 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 55,903 shares of company stock worth $9,460,221 over the last quarter. Insiders own 0.79% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts recently issued reports on the company. Robert W. Baird raised their price target on Quest Diagnostics from $190.00 to $191.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 20th. Piper Sandler reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $180.00 price target (up from $165.00) on shares of Quest Diagnostics in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Mizuho upped their price target on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $177.00 to $178.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Citigroup downgraded shares of Quest Diagnostics from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $185.00 price objective for the company. in a research note on Tuesday, March 4th. Finally, Truist Financial upped their target price on Quest Diagnostics from $172.00 to $182.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $179.57.

Quest Diagnostics 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.