Candriam S.C.A. Reduces Holdings in Quest Diagnostics Incorporated $DGX

Candriam S.C.A. lowered its position in Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX) by 73.0% in the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 71,819 shares of the medical research company’s stock after selling 193,952 shares during the period. Candriam S.C.A.’s holdings in Quest Diagnostics were worth $13,687,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in Quest Diagnostics by 2.1% during the second quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 14,233,576 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $2,556,777,000 after purchasing an additional 296,860 shares during the period. Boston Partners raised its position in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 32.4% in the second quarter. Boston Partners now owns 3,039,848 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $545,318,000 after purchasing an additional 744,102 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 7.5% during the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,982,415 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $533,563,000 after buying an additional 208,261 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. boosted its holdings in Quest Diagnostics by 29.9% in the 2nd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 1,658,351 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $297,890,000 after buying an additional 381,619 shares during the period. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE grew its stake in Quest Diagnostics by 36.3% in the 2nd quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 1,599,602 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $287,337,000 after buying an additional 426,399 shares in the last quarter. 88.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Key Quest Diagnostics News

Here are the key news stories impacting Quest Diagnostics this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q4 results beat consensus: adjusted EPS of $2.42 topped estimates and revenue of $2.81B was up 7.1% year-over-year, driven by stronger test volumes and price/mix. This is the core catalyst cited by multiple outlets. Yahoo Finance: Q4 Highlights
• Positive Sentiment: Shareholder-return boost: board raised the quarterly dividend 7.5% to $0.86 and authorized an additional $1.0B in share repurchases — a clear positive for income and buyback-driven EPS support. PR Newswire: Dividend & Repurchase
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst/market reaction: shares hit a 52‑week high and Citigroup raised its price target to $215 (neutral rating), reflecting positive reception to the quarter and capital return actions. MSN: 52-week high Benzinga: Citi PT raise
• Positive Sentiment: Longer-term growth potential: CEO comments on developing blood-based Alzheimer’s diagnostics highlight a potential new growth avenue if tests gain clinical adoption and reimbursement. YouTube: CEO on Alzheimer’s testing
• Neutral Sentiment: Investor materials and call: company released the earnings press release, slide deck and full transcript; management reiterated drivers (volume growth, pricing, cost control) that investors will parse for sustainability. Press Release / Slide Deck
• Negative Sentiment: Guidance is mixed: FY2026 reported diluted EPS guidance of $9.45–$9.65 (and adjusted EPS ranges detailed in the release) may sit below some street estimates, creating a risk that analysts trim expectations despite the quarter. PR Newswire: Q4 Results & Guidance

Insider Activity at Quest Diagnostics

In other news, CEO J. E. Davis sold 55,093 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $192.22, for a total value of $10,589,976.46. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 120,480 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $23,158,665.60. This represents a 31.38% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, SVP Mark E. Delaney sold 7,946 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $187.35, for a total transaction of $1,488,683.10. Following the sale, the senior vice president owned 7,530 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,410,745.50. This trade represents a 51.34% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold 64,289 shares of company stock valued at $12,318,360 over the last three months. 8.16% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Quest Diagnostics Stock Up 7.2%

DGX opened at $204.96 on Wednesday. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $181.77 and a 200-day moving average price of $181.77. The firm has a market capitalization of $22.80 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.06, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.42 and a beta of 0.66. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71, a current ratio of 1.13 and a quick ratio of 1.04. Quest Diagnostics Incorporated has a one year low of $157.20 and a one year high of $207.05.

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 10th. The medical research company reported $2.42 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.35 by $0.07. Quest Diagnostics had a return on equity of 15.47% and a net margin of 8.91%.The company had revenue of $2.81 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.75 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $2.23 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 7.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Quest Diagnostics has set its FY 2026 guidance at 9.45-9.650 EPS. Equities research analysts expect that Quest Diagnostics Incorporated will post 9.7 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Quest Diagnostics announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock buyback program on Tuesday, February 10th that permits the company to buyback $1.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the medical research company to reacquire up to 4.7% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are usually an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Quest Diagnostics Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 20th. Investors of record on Monday, April 6th will be given a $0.86 dividend. This represents a $3.44 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.7%. This is a positive change from Quest Diagnostics’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.80. The ex-dividend date is Monday, April 6th. Quest Diagnostics’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 37.56%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on DGX shares. Wall Street Zen downgraded Quest Diagnostics from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Sunday, January 25th. Leerink Partners boosted their price objective on Quest Diagnostics from $203.00 to $210.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 21st. Barclays raised Quest Diagnostics from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $210.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Friday, January 30th. Truist Financial raised their target price on Quest Diagnostics from $195.00 to $205.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 22nd. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $220.00 price target on shares of Quest Diagnostics in a research report on Tuesday. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $201.00.

Quest Diagnostics Company Profile

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE: DGX) is a leading provider of diagnostic information services that supports clinical decision-making for patients, physicians and healthcare organizations. The company operates a network of clinical laboratories and patient service centers that perform a broad range of laboratory tests and diagnostic assays used in routine care, disease diagnosis, monitoring and screening.

Its services span core clinical laboratory testing, anatomic pathology, molecular and genomic diagnostics, infectious disease testing and toxicology.