6,657 Quest Diagnostics Incorporated $DGX Shares Acquired by Narwhal Capital Management

Narwhal Capital Management increased its position in Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX) by 49.9% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 20,005 shares of the medical research company’s stock after acquiring an additional 6,657 shares during the quarter. Narwhal Capital Management’s holdings in Quest Diagnostics were worth $4,663,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Next Level Wealth Planning LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics in the third quarter worth about $25,000. Ancora Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Quest Diagnostics in the second quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Frazier Financial Advisors LLC grew its stake in Quest Diagnostics by 492.9% during the first quarter. Frazier Financial Advisors LLC now owns 166 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 138 shares in the last quarter. Ameritas Advisory Services LLC purchased a new position in Quest Diagnostics during the second quarter valued at approximately $45,000. Finally, Dunhill Financial LLC bought a new stake in Quest Diagnostics during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $46,000. 88.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

DGX has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Argus set a $260.00 target price on shares of Quest Diagnostics in a research note on Wednesday, July 29th. Jefferies Financial Group restated a “buy” rating and set a $245.00 price target on shares of Quest Diagnostics in a research report on Thursday, July 23rd. Truist Financial upped their price target on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $250.00 to $260.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, September 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $220.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 28th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded Quest Diagnostics from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 28th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have given a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $248.70.

Insider Activity

In other Quest Diagnostics news, Director Gary M. Pfeiffer sold 1,203 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, October 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $243.00, for a total value of $292,329.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 29,802 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,241,886. This represents a 3.88% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, EVP Catherine T. Doherty sold 22,105 shares of Quest Diagnostics stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $248.02, for a total transaction of $5,482,482.10. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 71,949 shares in the company, valued at $17,844,790.98. The trade was a 23.50% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders sold 55,985 shares of company stock valued at $13,715,017 in the last three months. Corporate insiders own 0.88% of the company’s stock.

Quest Diagnostics Price Performance

DGX stock opened at $258.15 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70, a current ratio of 1.70 and a quick ratio of 1.58. Quest Diagnostics Incorporated has a one year low of $171.18 and a one year high of $259.84. The stock has a market cap of $28.40 billion, a PE ratio of 23.52, a P/E/G ratio of 2.32 and a beta of 0.55. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $240.01 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $214.44.

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 22nd. The medical research company reported $3.00 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.87 by $0.13. The firm had revenue of $3.10 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.05 billion. Quest Diagnostics had a return on equity of 16.21% and a net margin of 9.53%. The company’s revenue was up 10.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.60 earnings per share. On average, analysts predict that Quest Diagnostics Incorporated will post 11.29 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Quest Diagnostics Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 27th. Investors of record on Tuesday, January 12th will be paid a $0.86 dividend. This represents a $3.44 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, January 12th. Quest Diagnostics’s payout ratio is presently 34.26%.

Quest Diagnostics Company Profile

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE: DGX) is a provider of diagnostic information services, conducting laboratory tests that help physicians and other health care professionals diagnose, monitor and manage medical conditions. Its services include routine blood and other clinical laboratory testing, anatomic pathology, and specialized molecular and genetic testing. The company serves patients, physicians, hospitals, health plans, employers and government organizations. In addition to testing performed through its laboratories and patient service centers, Quest offers services such as workplace drug testing and diagnostic support for clinical research.