Trexquant Investment LP Makes New Investment in Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX)

Trexquant Investment LP acquired a new stake in Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor acquired 20,167 shares of the medical research company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,042,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in DGX. Sierra Ocean LLC acquired a new position in shares of Quest Diagnostics in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Versant Capital Management Inc raised its holdings in Quest Diagnostics by 340.4% in the 4th quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 251 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $38,000 after acquiring an additional 194 shares during the last quarter. First Financial Corp IN purchased a new position in shares of Quest Diagnostics during the 4th quarter worth $38,000. FPC Investment Advisory Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics during the fourth quarter worth $45,000. Finally, Global Trust Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics during the fourth quarter worth $49,000. 88.06% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

DGX has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Truist Financial lifted their price target on Quest Diagnostics from $172.00 to $182.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted 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. Leerink Partners upgraded Quest Diagnostics from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and upped their price target for the stock from $169.00 to $174.00 in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Redburn Atlantic initiated coverage on Quest Diagnostics in a research note on Wednesday, April 2nd. They issued a “buy” rating and a $195.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded shares of Quest Diagnostics from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Quest Diagnostics presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $179.57.

Quest Diagnostics Stock Performance

NYSE:DGX opened at $164.08 on Monday. Quest Diagnostics Incorporated has a 1-year low of $125.42 and a 1-year high of $178.87. The stock has a market cap of $18.21 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.34, a PEG ratio of 2.16 and a beta of 0.78. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.82, a current ratio of 1.10 and a quick ratio of 1.02. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $168.21 and a two-hundred day moving average of $159.55.

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The medical research company reported $2.23 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.19 by $0.04. Quest Diagnostics had a return on equity of 15.07% and a net margin of 8.80%. On average, research analysts expect that Quest Diagnostics Incorporated 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. Shareholders of record on Monday, April 7th will be issued a dividend of $0.80 per share. This is a positive change from Quest Diagnostics’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.75. This represents a $3.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.95%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, April 7th. Quest Diagnostics’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 41.61%.

Insider Activity at Quest Diagnostics

In other Quest Diagnostics news, CEO J. E. Davis sold 39,191 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $168.46, for a total value of $6,602,115.86. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 127,623 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $21,499,370.58. This trade represents a 23.49 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, SVP Mark E. Delaney sold 403 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 $759,723.20. This trade represents a 8.02 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 55,903 shares of company stock valued at $9,460,221 over the last three months. 0.79% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.