Olstein Capital Management L.P. Reduces Stock Holdings in Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX)

Olstein Capital Management L.P. cut its holdings in Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX) by 15.2% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 46,000 shares of the medical research company’s stock after selling 8,216 shares during the period. Quest Diagnostics comprises about 1.4% of Olstein Capital Management L.P.’s holdings, making the stock its 24th largest position. Olstein Capital Management L.P.’s holdings in Quest Diagnostics were worth $7,783,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the business. Brighton Jones LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics in the fourth quarter valued at about $323,000. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. lifted its stake in Quest Diagnostics by 27.9% in the 4th quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 13,229 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $2,015,000 after buying an additional 2,884 shares in the last quarter. Choreo LLC grew its holdings in Quest Diagnostics by 21.8% during the 4th quarter. Choreo LLC now owns 1,590 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $240,000 after buying an additional 285 shares during the last quarter. Bleakley Financial Group LLC grew its holdings in Quest Diagnostics by 4.7% during the 4th quarter. Bleakley Financial Group LLC now owns 2,078 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $313,000 after buying an additional 94 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd increased its position in Quest Diagnostics by 1.9% during the fourth quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd now owns 12,576 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $1,897,000 after buying an additional 237 shares in the last quarter. 88.06% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Quest Diagnostics

In other Quest Diagnostics news, CEO J. E. Davis sold 39,191 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $168.46, for a total transaction of $6,602,115.86. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 127,623 shares in the company, valued at $21,499,370.58. The trade was a 23.49% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, SVP Michael E. Prevoznik sold 4,643 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, March 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $170.00, for a total transaction of $789,310.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 38,117 shares in the company, valued at $6,479,890. This trade represents a 10.86% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 47,263 shares of company stock valued at $7,979,355. 8.16% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Quest Diagnostics Trading Up 0.5%

Shares of DGX opened at $174.48 on Monday. Quest Diagnostics Incorporated has a twelve month low of $135.47 and a twelve month high of $179.99. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $171.53 and its 200 day simple moving average is $165.17. 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 firm has a market capitalization of $19.48 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.69, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.16 and a beta of 0.49.

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 22nd. The medical research company reported $2.21 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.15 by $0.06. The business had revenue of $2.65 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.63 billion. Quest Diagnostics had a return on equity of 15.07% and a net margin of 8.80%. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Quest Diagnostics Incorporated will post 9.7 earnings per share for the current year.

Quest Diagnostics Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, July 21st. Stockholders of record on Monday, July 7th will be paid a dividend of $0.80 per share. This represents a $3.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.83%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, July 7th. Quest Diagnostics’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 40.46%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts recently commented on the company. Piper Sandler increased their price objective on Quest Diagnostics from $180.00 to $200.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, April 28th. Robert W. Baird upped their target price on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $191.00 to $194.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Barclays lifted their price target on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $175.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Truist Financial boosted their price objective on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $182.00 to $190.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Finally, Redburn Atlantic assumed coverage on shares of Quest Diagnostics in a research note on Wednesday, April 2nd. They set a “buy” rating and a $195.00 price objective on the stock. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $185.73.

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.