Net Worth Advisory Group Purchases New Position in Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX)

Net Worth Advisory Group acquired a new position in shares of Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX) during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 6,433 shares of the medical research company’s stock, valued at approximately $999,000.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Claro Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Quest Diagnostics during the 3rd quarter worth $1,485,000. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd grew its position in Quest Diagnostics by 2.4% during the 3rd quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd now owns 12,339 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $1,916,000 after purchasing an additional 289 shares during the last quarter. Kapitalo Investimentos Ltda acquired a new position in Quest Diagnostics in the third quarter valued at $201,000. Swedbank AB increased its stake in Quest Diagnostics by 30.0% in the third quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 84,863 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $13,175,000 after purchasing an additional 19,570 shares during the period. Finally, Occidental Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 4.9% during the third quarter. Occidental Asset Management LLC now owns 22,540 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $3,499,000 after buying an additional 1,046 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 88.06% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, SVP Mark E. Delaney sold 420 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $143.08, for a total value of $60,093.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 5,019 shares in the company, valued at approximately $718,118.52. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In related news, SVP Mark E. Delaney sold 420 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $143.08, for a total value of $60,093.60. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 5,019 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $718,118.52. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, SVP Karthik Kuppusamy sold 1,990 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $153.26, for a total transaction of $304,987.40. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 11,459 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,756,206.34. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.79% of the company’s stock.

Quest Diagnostics Stock Performance

NYSE:DGX opened at $149.58 on Friday. Quest Diagnostics Incorporated has a twelve month low of $120.87 and a twelve month high of $159.36. 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 current ratio of 1.00, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $152.67 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $143.93.

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, topping the consensus estimate 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 return on equity of 15.35% and a net margin of 8.99%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 2.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $2.30 EPS. As a group, research analysts expect that Quest Diagnostics Incorporated will post 8.89 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Quest Diagnostics Announces Dividend

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. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 4th. This represents a $3.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.01%. Quest Diagnostics’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 40.38%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have weighed in on DGX. Citigroup raised Quest Diagnostics from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $145.00 to $165.00 in a research report on Wednesday, July 10th. Barclays increased their price target on Quest Diagnostics from $144.00 to $154.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 27th. Robert W. Baird boosted their price objective on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $153.00 to $154.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 24th. Truist Financial raised their target price on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $158.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, October 7th. Finally, Piper Sandler boosted their price target on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $145.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, July 29th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Quest Diagnostics currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $154.92.

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.