Leerink Partnrs Equities Analysts Cut Earnings Estimates for Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX)

Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX) – Leerink Partnrs reduced their Q3 2024 earnings per share (EPS) estimates for shares of Quest Diagnostics in a research note issued on Tuesday, April 23rd. Leerink Partnrs analyst M. Cherny now anticipates that the medical research company will post earnings of $2.18 per share for the quarter, down from their previous estimate of $2.35. Leerink Partnrs has a “Market Perform” rating on the stock. The consensus estimate for Quest Diagnostics’ current full-year earnings is $8.75 per share. Leerink Partnrs also issued estimates for Quest Diagnostics’ FY2024 earnings at $8.37 EPS, FY2026 earnings at $10.05 EPS, FY2027 earnings at $10.98 EPS and FY2028 earnings at $11.97 EPS.

DGX has been the subject of several other reports. Citigroup boosted their target price on Quest Diagnostics from $135.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Truist Financial boosted their target price on Quest Diagnostics from $145.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday. UBS Group boosted their price objective on Quest Diagnostics from $139.00 to $146.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Barclays initiated coverage on Quest Diagnostics in a research report on Wednesday, January 3rd. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $145.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Mizuho boosted their price objective on Quest Diagnostics from $150.00 to $155.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $146.25.

Quest Diagnostics Price Performance

Quest Diagnostics stock opened at $137.55 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $15.28 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.51, a PEG ratio of 2.95 and a beta of 0.91. Quest Diagnostics has a 1 year low of $119.59 and a 1 year high of $148.62. The business has a 50-day moving average of $128.69 and a 200-day moving average of $131.08. The company has a current ratio of 0.97, a quick ratio of 1.20 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59.

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 23rd. The medical research company reported $2.04 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.86 by $0.18. The firm had revenue of $2.37 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.29 billion. Quest Diagnostics had a return on equity of 15.52% and a net margin of 9.11%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 1.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $2.04 EPS.

Quest Diagnostics Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 22nd. Stockholders of record on Monday, April 8th were paid a dividend of $0.75 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, April 5th. This represents a $3.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.18%. This is a boost from Quest Diagnostics’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.71. Quest Diagnostics’s dividend payout ratio is currently 38.22%.

Insider Transactions at Quest Diagnostics

In other news, SVP Michael E. Prevoznik sold 661 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $126.14, for a total transaction of $83,378.54. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 40,206 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,071,584.84. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In related news, Director Vicky B. Gregg sold 2,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, February 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $126.64, for a total value of $316,600.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 16,329 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,067,904.56. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Michael E. Prevoznik sold 661 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $126.14, for a total value of $83,378.54. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 40,206 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,071,584.84. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 15,150 shares of company stock worth $1,913,202 in the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.79% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in DGX. NBC Securities Inc. bought a new position in Quest Diagnostics during the 3rd quarter worth $25,000. Altshuler Shaham Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics during the 4th quarter worth $26,000. VisionPoint Advisory Group LLC grew its holdings in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 100.0% during the 3rd quarter. VisionPoint Advisory Group LLC now owns 218 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 109 shares in the last quarter. BKM Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics during the 4th quarter worth $29,000. Finally, Spartan Planning & Wealth Management acquired a new stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics during the 4th quarter worth $31,000. 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.