Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. Makes New Investment in Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX)

Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. acquired a new position in Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX) during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 5,948 shares of the medical research company’s stock, valued at approximately $814,000.

Several other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Van Lanschot Kempen Investment Management N.V. purchased a new position in shares of Quest Diagnostics during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $48,783,000. M&G Plc purchased a new position in shares of Quest Diagnostics during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $46,432,000. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 2.5% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 13,921,955 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $1,853,151,000 after buying an additional 345,754 shares in the last quarter. Pathstone Holdings LLC purchased a new position in shares of Quest Diagnostics during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $46,342,000. Finally, Wedge Capital Management L L P NC lifted its position in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 601.7% during the 2nd quarter. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC now owns 277,561 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $37,993,000 after buying an additional 238,007 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 88.06% of the company’s stock.

Quest Diagnostics Stock Performance

Shares of Quest Diagnostics stock opened at $152.49 on Thursday. The business has a 50-day moving average of $150.96 and a 200 day moving average of $141.54. Quest Diagnostics Incorporated has a 12 month low of $119.59 and a 12 month high of $159.36. The stock has a market capitalization of $16.98 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.52, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.80 and a beta of 0.89. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57, a current ratio of 1.00 and a quick ratio of 0.91.

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, July 23rd. The medical research company reported $2.35 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.31 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $2.40 billion during 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 for the quarter was up 2.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business posted $2.30 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Quest Diagnostics Incorporated will post 8.89 earnings per share for the current year.

Quest Diagnostics Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, October 21st. Stockholders of record on Friday, October 4th will be paid a $0.75 dividend. This represents a $3.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.97%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 4th. Quest Diagnostics’s payout ratio is presently 40.38%.

Insider Activity

In other news, SVP Karthik Kuppusamy sold 1,990 shares of Quest Diagnostics 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 completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 11,459 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,756,206.34. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In other news, SVP Mark E. Delaney sold 420 shares of Quest Diagnostics 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 owns 5,019 shares in the company, valued at approximately $718,118.52. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, 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 value of $304,987.40. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 11,459 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,756,206.34. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.79% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts recently commented on DGX shares. Truist Financial increased their price objective on Quest Diagnostics from $150.00 to $158.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, July 15th. Robert W. Baird raised their target price on Quest Diagnostics from $153.00 to $154.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on Quest Diagnostics from $152.00 to $155.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 30th. StockNews.com raised Quest Diagnostics from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 23rd. Finally, Evercore ISI initiated coverage on Quest Diagnostics in a research report on Wednesday, August 28th. They set an “in-line” rating and a $165.00 price objective for the company. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $154.33.

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.