Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX) Stock Has Average Price Target of $237.85 According to Brokerages

Shares of Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX) have been given an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by the twelve research firms that are presently covering the company, MarketBeat.com reports. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. The average 1 year price target among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $237.85.

Several analysts have recently commented on DGX shares. Jefferies Financial Group restated a “buy” rating and issued a $245.00 price target on shares of Quest Diagnostics in a research note on Thursday, July 23rd. UBS Group upped their price objective on Quest Diagnostics from $232.00 to $245.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 8th. Weiss Ratings upgraded Quest Diagnostics from a “buy (a-)” rating to a “buy (a)” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 6th. Wall Street Zen raised Quest Diagnostics from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 28th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on Quest Diagnostics from $220.00 to $250.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 28th.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO J. E. Davis sold 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $242.72, for a total transaction of $2,427,200.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 122,423 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $29,714,510.56. The trade was a 7.55% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, SVP Mark E. Delaney sold 1,600 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $235.18, for a total transaction of $376,288.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president owned 10,335 shares in the company, valued at $2,430,585.30. The trade was a 13.41% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders sold 34,277 shares of company stock worth $8,316,493 in the last 90 days. 0.88% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Quest Diagnostics

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of DGX. Eastern Bank raised its holdings in Quest Diagnostics by 9.3% during the third quarter. Eastern Bank now owns 207,720 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $48,413,000 after purchasing an additional 17,751 shares during the last quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC boosted its position in Quest Diagnostics by 25.0% during the second quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 33,797 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $7,163,000 after purchasing an additional 6,767 shares in the last quarter. Pinnacle Wealth Management Advisory Group LLC purchased a new stake in Quest Diagnostics during the second quarter worth $226,000. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC grew its holdings in Quest Diagnostics by 5.2% in the second quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC now owns 11,961 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $2,535,000 after purchasing an additional 589 shares during the last quarter. Finally, NewEdge Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Quest Diagnostics by 4.6% in the second quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 12,508 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $2,651,000 after purchasing an additional 550 shares during the last quarter. 88.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Quest Diagnostics Trading Up 1.5%

NYSE DGX opened at $233.94 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.46, a current ratio of 1.59 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72. The stock has a market capitalization of $25.82 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.83, a P/E/G ratio of 2.08 and a beta of 0.54. Quest Diagnostics has a 52-week low of $171.18 and a 52-week high of $248.84. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $237.46 and a 200 day moving average price of $214.91.

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 23rd. The medical research company reported $3.12 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.82 by $0.30. Quest Diagnostics had a return on equity of 16.01% and a net margin of 9.18%. The company had revenue of $3.04 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.97 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $2.62 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Quest Diagnostics has set its FY 2026 guidance at 11.050-11.250 EPS. Equities research analysts expect that Quest Diagnostics will post 11.15 EPS for the current year.

Quest Diagnostics Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 21st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, October 6th will be issued a $0.86 dividend. This represents a $3.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.5%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, October 6th. Quest Diagnostics’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 36.52%.

About Quest Diagnostics

Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE: DGX) is a provider of diagnostic information services. The company performs laboratory testing that helps physicians, hospitals, health plans, employers and other organizations diagnose, monitor and manage medical conditions.

Its services include routine blood and other clinical laboratory tests, advanced and molecular diagnostics, anatomic pathology, genetic and genomic testing, and testing related to infectious diseases. Quest also provides employer health screening, drug testing, clinical trial support and laboratory information services.