Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC Sells 6,200 Shares of Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX)

Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC decreased its holdings in shares of Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX) by 6.7% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 86,385 shares of the medical research company’s stock after selling 6,200 shares during the quarter. Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC owned 0.08% of Quest Diagnostics worth $13,032,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. grew its holdings in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 1.6% in the fourth quarter. Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. now owns 3,843 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $580,000 after purchasing an additional 60 shares during the last quarter. Net Worth Advisory Group raised its holdings in Quest Diagnostics by 1.0% in the 4th quarter. Net Worth Advisory Group now owns 6,495 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $980,000 after purchasing an additional 62 shares in the last quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group boosted its stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 5.5% during the 4th quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group now owns 1,315 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $198,000 after purchasing an additional 68 shares in the last quarter. Mather Group LLC. raised its stake in Quest Diagnostics by 10.4% in the fourth quarter. Mather Group LLC. now owns 764 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $115,000 after buying an additional 72 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Private Trust Co. NA lifted its stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 7.7% in the 4th quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 1,053 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $159,000 after purchasing an additional 75 shares during the period. 88.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

DGX has been the topic of several analyst reports. Barclays boosted their target price on Quest Diagnostics from $168.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Morgan Stanley raised shares of Quest Diagnostics from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $145.00 to $172.00 in a research report on Tuesday, December 17th. Jefferies Financial Group restated a “buy” rating and issued a $185.00 price target (up from $175.00) on shares of Quest Diagnostics in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on Quest Diagnostics from $173.00 to $180.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. Finally, Leerink Partnrs raised shares of Quest Diagnostics from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $178.38.

Quest Diagnostics Stock Performance

NYSE DGX opened at $169.39 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.02, a current ratio of 1.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.82. Quest Diagnostics Incorporated has a twelve month low of $125.42 and a twelve month high of $178.87. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $167.00 and a 200-day moving average price of $159.20. The firm has a market cap of $18.80 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.03, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.16 and a beta of 0.92.

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The medical research company reported $2.23 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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%. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Quest Diagnostics Incorporated will post 9.7 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Quest Diagnostics Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 21st. Stockholders of record on Monday, April 7th will be issued a $0.80 dividend. This represents a $3.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.89%. This is a boost from Quest Diagnostics’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.75. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, April 7th. Quest Diagnostics’s payout ratio is 41.61%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, SVP Michael E. Prevoznik sold 4,643 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $170.00, for a total value of $789,310.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 38,117 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,479,890. This trade represents a 10.86 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Catherine T. Doherty sold 5,370 shares of the firm’s 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 transaction, the executive vice president now owns 68,068 shares in the company, 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. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 14,157 shares of company stock worth $2,423,755. Corporate insiders own 0.79% of the company’s stock.

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.