CX Institutional Increases Stake in Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX)

CX Institutional grew its holdings in Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX) by 4.0% in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 9,499 shares of the medical research company’s stock after buying an additional 366 shares during the quarter. CX Institutional’s holdings in Quest Diagnostics were worth $1,607,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in DGX. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC increased its position in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 57.8% in the first quarter. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC now owns 183 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 67 shares in the last quarter. Sierra Ocean LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $33,000. NBC Securities Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics in the first quarter valued at approximately $35,000. FPC Investment Advisory Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $45,000. Finally, SBI Securities Co. Ltd. purchased a new stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $54,000. 88.06% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Quest Diagnostics Stock Performance

NYSE DGX opened at $176.83 on Thursday. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $172.08 and its two-hundred day moving average is $165.42. The firm has a market capitalization of $19.74 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.99, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.16 and a beta of 0.49. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.82, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a current ratio of 1.10. Quest Diagnostics Incorporated has a fifty-two week low of $135.47 and a fifty-two week high of $179.99.

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

Quest Diagnostics Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, July 21st. Stockholders of record on Monday, July 7th will be paid a $0.80 dividend. This represents a $3.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.81%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, July 7th. Quest Diagnostics’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 40.46%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

DGX has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Barclays boosted their price objective on Quest Diagnostics from $175.00 to $185.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Truist Financial boosted their price objective on Quest Diagnostics from $182.00 to $190.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Redburn Partners set a $195.00 price target on Quest Diagnostics in a research note on Wednesday, April 2nd. Wall Street Zen cut Quest Diagnostics from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, June 7th. Finally, Citigroup cut 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. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $185.73.

Insider Activity

In other news, SVP Michael E. Prevoznik sold 4,643 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 17th. The stock was 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 represents a 10.86% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO J. E. Davis sold 39,191 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on 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 completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 127,623 shares in the company, valued at approximately $21,499,370.58. This trade represents a 23.49% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 47,263 shares of company stock valued at $7,979,355 in the last quarter. Insiders own 8.16% 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.