Everence Capital Management Inc. Purchases 11,780 Shares of Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX)

Everence Capital Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX) by 371.6% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 14,950 shares of the medical research company’s stock after acquiring an additional 11,780 shares during the quarter. Everence Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Quest Diagnostics were worth $2,061,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in DGX. NBC Securities Inc. purchased a new stake in Quest Diagnostics in the third quarter valued at approximately $25,000. VisionPoint Advisory Group LLC increased its stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 100.0% in the third quarter. VisionPoint Advisory Group LLC now owns 218 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 109 shares during the period. Chilton Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Quest Diagnostics during the first quarter worth $28,000. BKM Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Quest Diagnostics during the fourth quarter valued at $29,000. Finally, FinTrust Capital Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Quest Diagnostics by 1,100.0% in the third quarter. FinTrust Capital Advisors LLC now owns 264 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 242 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 88.06% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Quest Diagnostics news, SVP Michael E. Prevoznik sold 5,611 shares of Quest Diagnostics stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $125.88, for a total transaction of $706,312.68. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 38,478 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,843,610.64. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. In other news, EVP Catherine T. Doherty sold 5,557 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $126.57, for a total value of $703,349.49. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 69,599 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,809,145.43. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, SVP Michael E. Prevoznik sold 5,611 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $125.88, for a total value of $706,312.68. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 38,478 shares in the company, valued at $4,843,610.64. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 15,150 shares of company stock valued at $1,913,202. 0.79% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Quest Diagnostics Stock Down 1.0 %

DGX stock opened at $127.41 on Wednesday. Quest Diagnostics Incorporated has a one year low of $119.59 and a one year high of $148.62. The firm has a market cap of $14.15 billion, a PE ratio of 17.01, a PEG ratio of 2.78 and a beta of 0.91. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $128.31 and its 200-day moving average price is $130.78. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70, a quick ratio of 1.20 and a current ratio of 1.31.

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 1st. The medical research company reported $2.15 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.11 by $0.04. Quest Diagnostics had a return on equity of 15.79% and a net margin of 9.23%. The business had revenue of $2.29 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.25 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.98 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 1.9% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Quest Diagnostics Incorporated will post 8.75 EPS for the current year.

Quest Diagnostics Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 22nd. Investors of record on Monday, April 8th will be issued a $0.75 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 5th. This represents a $3.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.35%. This is a boost from Quest Diagnostics’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.71. Quest Diagnostics’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 37.92%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on the company. StockNews.com cut Quest Diagnostics from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday. Truist Financial restated a “hold” rating and set a $145.00 price target on shares of Quest Diagnostics in a research report on Wednesday, March 20th. Leerink Partnrs restated a “market perform” rating on shares of Quest Diagnostics in a research report on Monday, February 26th. Jefferies Financial Group raised Quest Diagnostics from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price target for the stock from $140.00 to $155.00 in a report on Wednesday, February 7th. Finally, Barclays initiated coverage on Quest Diagnostics in a research report on Wednesday, January 3rd. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $145.00 target price on the stock. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Quest Diagnostics presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $144.18.

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.