Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX) Reaches New 1-Year High – Still a Buy?

Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX)’s share price reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $248.65 and last traded at $247.1970, with a volume of 1373537 shares. The stock had previously closed at $237.89.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

DGX has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. UBS Group upped their price objective on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $232.00 to $245.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 8th. Mizuho lifted their target price on Quest Diagnostics from $235.00 to $260.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, July 24th. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $245.00 price target on shares of Quest Diagnostics in a research note on Thursday, July 23rd. Weiss Ratings upgraded Quest Diagnostics from a “buy (b+)” rating to a “buy (a-)” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 12th. Finally, Barclays lifted their price objective on Quest Diagnostics from $230.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, July 23rd. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have assigned a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Quest Diagnostics currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $236.31.

Quest Diagnostics Stock Up 0.2%

The stock has a market capitalization of $27.32 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.27, a P/E/G ratio of 2.26 and a beta of 0.55. The company has a current ratio of 1.59, a quick ratio of 1.46 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $232.48 and its 200 day simple moving average is $210.38.

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX) last released its earnings results on Thursday, July 23rd. The medical research company reported $3.12 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.82 by $0.30. Quest Diagnostics had a net margin of 9.18% and a return on equity of 16.01%. The company had revenue of $3.04 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.97 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $2.62 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 10.2% on a year-over-year basis. Quest Diagnostics has set its FY 2026 guidance at 11.050-11.250 EPS. As a group, research analysts predict that Quest Diagnostics Incorporated will post 11.15 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Quest Diagnostics Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 21st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, October 6th will be paid a dividend of $0.86 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, October 6th. This represents a $3.44 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.4%. Quest Diagnostics’s dividend payout ratio is presently 36.52%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, SVP Mark E. Delaney sold 1,600 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $235.18, for a total transaction of $376,288.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 10,335 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,430,585.30. This represents a 13.41% decrease in their position. The transaction 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, CEO J. E. Davis sold 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $242.72, for a total value of $2,427,200.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 122,423 shares in the company, valued at $29,714,510.56. This trade represents a 7.55% 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. Insiders have sold a total of 34,277 shares of company stock valued at $8,316,493 in the last quarter. Insiders own 0.88% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Quest Diagnostics

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Bank OZK bought a new stake in Quest Diagnostics during the 2nd quarter valued at $3,247,000. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. grew its stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 39.1% in the second quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 15,405 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $3,265,000 after purchasing an additional 4,334 shares in the last quarter. BlackRock Inc. bought a new position in shares of Quest Diagnostics in the second quarter worth $1,965,923,000. SGL Investment Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Quest Diagnostics during the second quarter valued at $6,485,000. Finally, Simplicity Wealth LLC acquired a new position in shares of Quest Diagnostics during the second quarter valued at $4,702,000. Institutional investors own 88.06% of the company’s stock.

About Quest Diagnostics

Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE: DGX) is a provider of diagnostic information services. The company performs laboratory testing used to help diagnose, monitor and manage diseases and other health conditions, serving physicians, hospitals, health plans, employers, government agencies and individual consumers.

Its services include routine blood and urine testing, advanced and esoteric diagnostics, molecular and genetic testing, anatomic pathology, cancer testing, drug screening and wellness-related assessments.