Analysts Set Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX) Price Target at $154.33

Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX) has been assigned a consensus recommendation of “Hold” from the thirteen research firms that are presently covering the firm, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 12-month price target among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $154.33.

A number of research firms have weighed in on DGX. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $152.00 to $155.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 30th. Barclays raised their price target on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $144.00 to $154.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 27th. Robert W. Baird boosted their price objective on Quest Diagnostics from $153.00 to $154.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 24th. Citigroup upgraded 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 report on Wednesday, July 10th. Finally, StockNews.com raised Quest Diagnostics from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 23rd.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, SVP Mark E. Delaney sold 420 shares of the firm’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 sale, the senior vice president now 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 accessible through this link. In related news, SVP Karthik Kuppusamy sold 1,990 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 in the company, valued at $1,756,206.34. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, SVP Mark E. Delaney sold 420 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on 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 sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 5,019 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $718,118.52. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.79% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in DGX. Sanctuary Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Quest Diagnostics during the second quarter valued at about $1,301,000. Cetera Investment Advisers raised its position in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 1.5% in the second quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 16,125 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $2,207,000 after purchasing an additional 243 shares during the period. Brandes Investment Partners LP lifted its stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 38.8% during the 2nd quarter. Brandes Investment Partners LP now owns 8,297 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $1,136,000 after buying an additional 2,320 shares in the last quarter. Quarry LP bought a new position in Quest Diagnostics in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $74,000. Finally, Sunbelt Securities Inc. purchased a new position in Quest Diagnostics in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $40,000. 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 $154.42 on Friday. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $150.96 and a 200 day simple moving average of $141.54. The firm has a market capitalization of $17.19 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.78, a PEG 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 has a one year low of $119.59 and a one year high of $159.36.

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, July 23rd. The medical research company reported $2.35 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.31 by $0.04. Quest Diagnostics had a return on equity of 15.35% and a net margin of 8.99%. The company had revenue of $2.40 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.39 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.30 earnings per share. Quest Diagnostics’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts anticipate that Quest Diagnostics will post 8.89 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Quest Diagnostics Announces Dividend

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

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.