Analysts Set Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX) Price Target at $177.69

Shares of Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX) have been given an average rating of “Moderate Buy” by the fifteen ratings firms that are presently covering the firm, MarketBeat.com reports. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, seven have assigned a buy recommendation and two have issued a strong buy recommendation on the company. The average 12-month target price among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $177.69.

A number of brokerages have recently commented on DGX. Bank of America boosted their price target on Quest Diagnostics from $179.00 to $182.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, December 13th. Piper Sandler reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $180.00 target price (up from $165.00) on shares of Quest Diagnostics in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Jefferies Financial Group reissued 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. UBS Group lifted their price target on Quest Diagnostics from $166.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, Mizuho increased their price objective on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $177.00 to $178.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Quest Diagnostics news, SVP Mark E. Delaney sold 403 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 5th. The stock was 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 ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Vicky B. Gregg sold 1,250 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $164.57, for a total value of $205,712.50. Following the sale, the director now owns 16,867 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,775,802.19. This represents a 6.90 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 2,792 shares of company stock worth $465,998. 0.79% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Quest Diagnostics

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Sierra Ocean LLC purchased a new stake in Quest Diagnostics during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Versant Capital Management Inc increased its stake in shares of 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 purchasing an additional 194 shares in the last quarter. First Financial Corp IN purchased a new stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics in the 4th quarter worth $38,000. FPC Investment Advisory Inc. bought a new position in Quest Diagnostics in the 4th quarter worth $45,000. Finally, Global Trust Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in Quest Diagnostics during the fourth quarter valued at $49,000. Institutional investors own 88.06% of the company’s stock.

Quest Diagnostics Stock Performance

Shares of Quest Diagnostics stock opened at $172.44 on Monday. Quest Diagnostics has a 12 month low of $123.66 and a 12 month high of $172.91. The firm has a market capitalization of $19.25 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.42, a P/E/G ratio of 2.15 and a beta of 0.91. The company has a current ratio of 1.10, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.82. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $157.21 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $155.68.

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The medical research company reported $2.23 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating 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%. On average, equities analysts forecast that Quest Diagnostics will post 9.7 earnings per share 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. This is an increase from Quest Diagnostics’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.75. The ex-dividend date is Monday, April 7th. This represents a $3.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.86%. Quest Diagnostics’s dividend payout ratio is 39.01%.

About Quest Diagnostics

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.