1,344 Shares in Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX) Bought by IMPACTfolio LLC

IMPACTfolio LLC bought a new position in shares of Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX) during the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor bought 1,344 shares of the medical research company’s stock, valued at approximately $209,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. TD Asset Management Inc increased its holdings in Quest Diagnostics by 6.5% during the 4th quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 40,099 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $5,529,000 after purchasing an additional 2,431 shares in the last quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia grew its holdings in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 31.7% during the fourth quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia now owns 14,615 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $2,015,000 after buying an additional 3,521 shares in the last quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System raised its position in Quest Diagnostics by 1.2% in the 4th quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 177,183 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $24,430,000 after buying an additional 2,101 shares during the last quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company raised its position in Quest Diagnostics by 5.8% in the 4th quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 135,148 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $18,634,000 after buying an additional 7,415 shares during the last quarter. Finally, CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC boosted its position in Quest Diagnostics by 126.3% during the 4th quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC now owns 7,459 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $1,028,000 after acquiring an additional 4,163 shares during the last quarter. 88.06% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

DGX has been the subject of several research reports. StockNews.com raised shares of Quest Diagnostics from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 23rd. Citigroup raised shares of Quest Diagnostics from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their target price for the company from $145.00 to $165.00 in a research report on Wednesday, July 10th. Piper Sandler boosted their price target on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $145.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, July 29th. Robert W. Baird raised their price objective on Quest Diagnostics from $153.00 to $154.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 24th. Finally, Evercore ISI began coverage on Quest Diagnostics in a research report on Wednesday, August 28th. They issued an “in-line” rating and a $165.00 target price on the stock. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Quest Diagnostics presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $154.33.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Quest Diagnostics news, SVP Mark E. Delaney sold 420 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $143.08, for a total value of $60,093.60. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 5,019 shares in the company, valued at $718,118.52. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In other Quest Diagnostics news, SVP Mark E. Delaney sold 420 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $143.08, for a total value of $60,093.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 5,019 shares in the company, valued at $718,118.52. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, SVP Karthik Kuppusamy sold 1,990 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $153.26, for a total value of $304,987.40. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 11,459 shares in the company, valued at $1,756,206.34. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.79% of the company’s stock.

Quest Diagnostics Price Performance

NYSE:DGX opened at $154.86 on Thursday. Quest Diagnostics Incorporated has a 52 week low of $120.10 and a 52 week high of $159.36. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $151.92 and its 200 day simple moving average is $142.44. The firm has a market cap of $17.20 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.84, a P/E/G ratio of 2.80 and a beta of 0.89. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a current ratio of 1.00.

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 23rd. The medical research company reported $2.35 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.31 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $2.40 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.39 billion. Quest Diagnostics had a return on equity of 15.35% and a net margin of 8.99%. Quest Diagnostics’s revenue was up 2.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $2.30 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Quest Diagnostics Incorporated will post 8.89 earnings per share for the current year.

Quest Diagnostics Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, October 21st. Stockholders of record on Friday, October 4th will be issued a dividend of $0.75 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 4th. This represents a $3.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.94%. Quest Diagnostics’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 40.38%.

About Quest Diagnostics

Quest Diagnostics Incorporated provides diagnostic testing and services in the United States and internationally. The company develops and delivers diagnostic information services, such as routine, non-routine and advanced clinical testing, anatomic pathology testing, and other diagnostic information services.