Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX) Given New $191.00 Price Target at Robert W. Baird

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX) had its price target upped by analysts at Robert W. Baird from $190.00 to $191.00 in a report released on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has an “outperform” rating on the medical research company’s stock. Robert W. Baird’s price objective suggests a potential upside of 14.62% from the company’s previous close.

DGX has been the subject of several other reports. Morgan Stanley upgraded shares of Quest Diagnostics from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and boosted their price objective for the stock from $145.00 to $172.00 in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $173.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. Leerink Partners upgraded shares of Quest Diagnostics from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and upped their target price for the company from $169.00 to $174.00 in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Citigroup downgraded shares of Quest Diagnostics from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $185.00 target price for the company. in a research note on Tuesday, March 4th. Finally, UBS Group upped their target price on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $166.00 to $170.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $178.38.

Quest Diagnostics Trading Down 0.8 %

DGX traded down $1.38 during trading on Thursday, hitting $166.64. 107,790 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 869,467. The company has a current ratio of 1.10, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.82. Quest Diagnostics has a 1 year low of $125.42 and a 1 year high of $178.87. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $164.63 and a 200 day moving average price of $158.48. The firm has a market cap of $18.49 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.67, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.16 and a beta of 0.92.

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The medical research company reported $2.23 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.19 by $0.04. Quest Diagnostics had a net margin of 8.80% and a return on equity of 15.07%. As a group, analysts expect that Quest Diagnostics will post 9.7 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Quest Diagnostics

In related news, Director Vicky B. Gregg sold 1,250 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $164.57, for a total value of $205,712.50. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 16,867 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,775,802.19. This represents a 6.90 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, SVP Mark E. Delaney sold 403 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $164.30, for a total transaction of $66,212.90. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 4,624 shares in the company, valued at $759,723.20. This trade represents a 8.02 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 14,157 shares of company stock valued at $2,423,755 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.79% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Quest Diagnostics

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Sierra Ocean LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics during the fourth quarter worth $33,000. Versant Capital Management Inc raised its holdings in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 340.4% during the fourth quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 251 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $38,000 after purchasing an additional 194 shares during the period. First Financial Corp IN acquired a new stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics during the fourth quarter worth $38,000. FPC Investment Advisory Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics during the fourth quarter worth $45,000. Finally, Global Trust Asset Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Quest Diagnostics during the fourth quarter worth about $49,000. 88.06% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.