Q3 EPS Forecast for Quest Diagnostics Lowered by Analyst

Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX) – Zacks Research cut their Q3 2025 earnings per share (EPS) estimates for Quest Diagnostics in a report issued on Wednesday, May 21st. Zacks Research analyst R. Department now expects that the medical research company will post earnings per share of $2.50 for the quarter, down from their prior estimate of $2.51. The consensus estimate for Quest Diagnostics’ current full-year earnings is $9.70 per share. Zacks Research also issued estimates for Quest Diagnostics’ Q1 2026 earnings at $2.39 EPS, Q2 2026 earnings at $2.68 EPS and Q1 2027 earnings at $2.62 EPS.

DGX has been the topic of several other reports. Mizuho upped their price objective on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $178.00 to $189.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 9th. Piper Sandler boosted their target price on Quest Diagnostics from $180.00 to $200.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, April 28th. Citigroup lowered Quest Diagnostics from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $185.00 price target for the company. in a research report on Tuesday, March 4th. UBS Group lifted their price objective on Quest Diagnostics from $166.00 to $170.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, Truist Financial increased their target price on Quest Diagnostics from $182.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 23rd. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $185.73.

Quest Diagnostics Trading Down 4.4%

Shares of DGX stock opened at $170.46 on Thursday. Quest Diagnostics has a 1-year low of $135.47 and a 1-year high of $179.99. The firm has a market cap of $19.03 billion, a PE ratio of 22.17, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.16 and a beta of 0.52. The company has a 50-day moving average of $170.46 and a two-hundred day moving average of $163.96. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.82, a current ratio of 1.10 and a quick ratio of 1.02.

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 22nd. The medical research company reported $2.21 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.15 by $0.06. Quest Diagnostics had a net margin of 8.80% and a return on equity of 15.07%. The business had revenue of $2.65 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.63 billion.

Quest Diagnostics Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, July 21st. Investors of record on Monday, July 7th will be issued a $0.80 dividend. This represents a $3.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.88%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, July 7th. Quest Diagnostics’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 40.46%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Quest Diagnostics

In other Quest Diagnostics news, SVP Michael E. Prevoznik sold 528 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $172.61, for a total value of $91,138.08. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 39,031 shares in the company, valued at $6,737,140.91. This represents a 1.33% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, SVP Karthik Kuppusamy sold 2,555 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $170.00, for a total transaction of $434,350.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 10,575 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,797,750. This represents a 19.46% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 53,985 shares of company stock worth $9,147,802 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 8.16% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Quest Diagnostics

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 52.8% in the 1st quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 940 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $159,000 after purchasing an additional 325 shares during the last quarter. IFM Investors Pty Ltd increased its position in Quest Diagnostics by 4.2% during the first quarter. IFM Investors Pty Ltd now owns 21,735 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $3,678,000 after buying an additional 880 shares during the period. Focus Partners Wealth lifted its stake in Quest Diagnostics by 147.0% in the first quarter. Focus Partners Wealth now owns 55,607 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $9,409,000 after buying an additional 33,096 shares during the last quarter. Integrity Alliance LLC. lifted its stake in Quest Diagnostics by 52.0% in the first quarter. Integrity Alliance LLC. now owns 13,788 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $2,333,000 after buying an additional 4,716 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Ransom Advisory Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics in the first quarter valued at approximately $288,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 88.06% of the company’s stock.

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.