Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX) Shares Sold by First Financial Bank Trust Division

First Financial Bank Trust Division lowered its position in Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX) by 6.7% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 7,392 shares of the medical research company’s stock after selling 530 shares during the period. First Financial Bank Trust Division’s holdings in Quest Diagnostics were worth $1,148,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of DGX. Legacy Financial Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in Quest Diagnostics by 1.6% in the 2nd quarter. Legacy Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 4,697 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $643,000 after purchasing an additional 72 shares during the period. Arkadios Wealth Advisors raised its stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 1.6% during the 1st quarter. Arkadios Wealth Advisors now owns 4,933 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $657,000 after buying an additional 77 shares during the period. New England Capital Financial Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 24.7% during the 1st quarter. New England Capital Financial Advisors LLC now owns 389 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $52,000 after buying an additional 77 shares in the last quarter. Meeder Advisory Services Inc. grew its stake in Quest Diagnostics by 4.9% in the 2nd quarter. Meeder Advisory Services Inc. now owns 1,795 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $246,000 after acquiring an additional 84 shares during the period. Finally, Keudell Morrison Wealth Management grew its stake in Quest Diagnostics by 3.8% in the 1st quarter. Keudell Morrison Wealth Management now owns 2,312 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $308,000 after acquiring an additional 85 shares during the period. 88.06% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have issued reports on the stock. Robert W. Baird increased their price objective on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $153.00 to $154.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 24th. Evercore ISI began coverage on shares of Quest Diagnostics in a research note on Wednesday, August 28th. They issued an “in-line” rating and a $165.00 price target on the stock. Truist Financial boosted their price objective on Quest Diagnostics from $150.00 to $158.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, July 15th. Piper Sandler raised their target price on Quest Diagnostics from $145.00 to $150.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, July 29th. Finally, Citigroup upgraded Quest Diagnostics from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $145.00 to $165.00 in a research report on Wednesday, July 10th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $154.33.

Quest Diagnostics Stock Up 0.6 %

Shares of 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 company has a quick ratio of 0.91, a current ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $151.92 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $142.44. The company has a market capitalization of $17.20 billion, a PE ratio of 20.84, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.80 and a beta of 0.89.

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

Quest Diagnostics Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, October 21st. Investors of record on Friday, October 4th will be given a $0.75 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 4th. This represents a $3.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.94%. Quest Diagnostics’s payout ratio is 40.38%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

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

Quest Diagnostics Company Profile

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.