Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX) to Issue Quarterly Dividend of $0.86

Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX) declared a quarterly dividend on Tuesday, November 10th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, January 12th will be paid a dividend of $0.86 per share by the medical research company on Wednesday, January 27th. This represents a $3.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, January 12th.

Quest Diagnostics has raised its dividend by an average of 0.1% annually over the last three years and has raised its dividend every year for the last 14 years. Quest Diagnostics has a dividend payout ratio of 32.7% meaning its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Analysts expect Quest Diagnostics to earn $11.90 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $3.44 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 28.9%.

Quest Diagnostics Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:DGX traded up $0.56 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $259.00. The stock had a trading volume of 126,809 shares, compared to its average volume of 976,178. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70, a quick ratio of 1.58 and a current ratio of 1.70. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $240.01 and a 200-day moving average price of $214.44. The stock has a market cap of $28.49 billion, a PE ratio of 25.76, a PEG ratio of 2.32 and a beta of 0.55. Quest Diagnostics has a 1-year low of $171.18 and a 1-year high of $260.29.

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

Insider Buying and Selling at Quest Diagnostics

In related news, EVP Catherine Doherty sold 22,105 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 of the company’s stock, valued at $17,844,790.98. This represents a 23.50% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director Gary Pfeiffer sold 1,203 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, October 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $243.00, for a total transaction of $292,329.00. Following the sale, the director owned 29,802 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,241,886. This trade represents a 3.88% 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. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 55,985 shares of company stock worth $13,715,017. 0.88% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Choreo LLC increased its position in Quest Diagnostics by 2.4% during the third quarter. Choreo LLC now owns 2,215 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $516,000 after buying an additional 52 shares during the period. Kingswood Wealth Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 1.4% during the third quarter. Kingswood Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 3,878 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $904,000 after acquiring an additional 55 shares during the last quarter. Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 1.2% in the 2nd quarter. Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC now owns 5,183 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $1,099,000 after acquiring an additional 62 shares during the period. Allworth Financial LP increased its holdings in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 3.9% in the 3rd quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 1,741 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $369,000 after acquiring an additional 66 shares during the period. Finally, SBI Securities Co. Ltd. increased its holdings in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 17.9% in the 3rd quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. now owns 441 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $112,000 after acquiring an additional 67 shares during the period. 88.06% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Quest Diagnostics

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.