139,951 Shares in Quest Diagnostics Incorporated $DGX Acquired by SEB Asset Management AB

SEB Asset Management AB bought a new position in Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX) during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor bought 139,951 shares of the medical research company’s stock, valued at approximately $27,428,000. SEB Asset Management AB owned approximately 0.13% of Quest Diagnostics at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Quest Diagnostics in the fourth quarter worth $229,522,000. Boston Partners boosted its stake in Quest Diagnostics by 32.8% during the third quarter. Boston Partners now owns 4,036,881 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $767,978,000 after buying an additional 997,033 shares during the period. EdgePoint Investment Group Inc. grew its position in Quest Diagnostics by 95.5% during the fourth quarter. EdgePoint Investment Group Inc. now owns 1,661,072 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $288,246,000 after buying an additional 811,320 shares in the last quarter. UBS Group AG grew its position in Quest Diagnostics by 67.8% during the fourth quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 1,114,451 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $193,391,000 after buying an additional 450,161 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE increased its stake in Quest Diagnostics by 36.3% in the 2nd quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 1,599,602 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $287,337,000 after acquiring an additional 426,399 shares during the last quarter. 88.06% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have weighed in on the company. Robert W. Baird raised their price target on Quest Diagnostics from $232.00 to $236.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, July 13th. UBS Group upped their price objective on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $210.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 22nd. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $225.00 target price on shares of Quest Diagnostics in a research note on Tuesday, April 21st. Evercore set a $225.00 target price on shares of Quest Diagnostics in a research report on Tuesday, April 21st. Finally, Barclays boosted their price target on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $225.00 to $230.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 22nd. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $217.17.

Insider Transactions at Quest Diagnostics

In other news, CEO J. E. Davis sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $194.14, for a total transaction of $1,941,400.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 132,423 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $25,708,601.22. This represents a 7.02% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, SVP Karthik Kuppusamy sold 8,147 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $200.00, for a total value of $1,629,400.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 13,510 shares in the company, valued at $2,702,000. The trade was a 37.62% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. 0.88% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Quest Diagnostics Stock Performance

NYSE:DGX opened at $210.87 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $23.34 billion, a PE ratio of 23.30, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.51 and a beta of 0.58. Quest Diagnostics Incorporated has a fifty-two week low of $165.30 and a fifty-two week high of $219.20. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67, a quick ratio of 1.08 and a current ratio of 1.18. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $200.52 and a 200-day moving average price of $196.27.

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, April 21st. The medical research company reported $2.50 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.37 by $0.13. Quest Diagnostics had a net margin of 9.07% and a return on equity of 15.60%. The company had revenue of $2.90 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.83 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.94 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.2% on a year-over-year basis. Quest Diagnostics has set its FY 2026 guidance at 10.630-10.830 EPS. Equities research analysts predict that Quest Diagnostics Incorporated will post 10.72 earnings per share for the current year.

Quest Diagnostics Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 22nd. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, July 8th will be given a $0.86 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, July 8th. This represents a $3.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.6%. Quest Diagnostics’s payout ratio is presently 38.01%.

Quest Diagnostics Company Profile

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE: DGX) is a leading provider of diagnostic information services that supports clinical decision-making for patients, physicians and healthcare organizations. The company operates a network of clinical laboratories and patient service centers that perform a broad range of laboratory tests and diagnostic assays used in routine care, disease diagnosis, monitoring and screening.

Its services span core clinical laboratory testing, anatomic pathology, molecular and genomic diagnostics, infectious disease testing and toxicology.