Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX) Stock Has Average Price Target of $248.70

Shares of Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX) have earned a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the nine research firms that are covering the company, Marketbeat.com reports. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, three have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. The average 1-year price objective among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $248.70.

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. UBS Group reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $250.00 price target on shares of Quest Diagnostics in a research note on Monday, October 19th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Quest Diagnostics from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 28th. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $245.00 target price on shares of Quest Diagnostics in a report on Thursday, July 23rd. Truist Financial boosted their target price on Quest Diagnostics from $250.00 to $260.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, September 21st. Finally, Argus set a $260.00 price target on Quest Diagnostics in a research note on Wednesday, July 29th.

Quest Diagnostics Stock Down 0.6%

DGX stock opened at $258.15 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $28.40 billion, a PE ratio of 25.71, a PEG ratio of 2.32 and a beta of 0.55. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70, a quick ratio of 1.58 and a current ratio of 1.70. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $240.01 and its 200-day moving average price is $214.44. Quest Diagnostics has a one year low of $171.18 and a one year high of $259.84.

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 22nd. The medical research company reported $3.00 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.87 by $0.13. Quest Diagnostics had a net margin of 9.53% and a return on equity of 16.21%. The firm had revenue of $3.10 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.05 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $2.60 EPS. Quest Diagnostics’s revenue was up 10.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Quest Diagnostics will post 11.29 EPS for the current year.

Quest Diagnostics Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 27th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, January 12th will be paid a dividend of $0.86 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, January 12th. This represents a $3.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.3%. Quest Diagnostics’s dividend payout ratio is 34.26%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Quest Diagnostics

In other news, EVP Catherine Doherty sold 22,105 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $248.02, for a total value of $5,482,482.10. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 71,949 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $17,844,790.98. This trade represents a 23.50% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, SVP Michael Prevoznik sold 22,677 shares of Quest Diagnostics stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $243.11, for a total transaction of $5,513,005.47. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president owned 37,557 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,130,482.27. This trade represents a 37.65% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders sold a total of 55,985 shares of company stock worth $13,715,017 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.88% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Quest Diagnostics

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of DGX. Choreo LLC lifted its stake in Quest Diagnostics by 2.4% during the third quarter. Choreo LLC now owns 2,215 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $516,000 after purchasing an additional 52 shares during the last quarter. Kingswood Wealth Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 1.4% during the third quarter. Kingswood Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 3,878 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $904,000 after purchasing an additional 55 shares in the last quarter. Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 1.2% in the 2nd quarter. Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC now owns 5,183 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $1,099,000 after purchasing an additional 62 shares during the last quarter. Allworth Financial LP lifted its holdings in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 3.9% in the 3rd quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 1,741 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $369,000 after purchasing an additional 66 shares during the last quarter. Finally, SBI Securities Co. Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 17.9% in the 3rd quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. now owns 441 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $112,000 after purchasing an additional 67 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 88.06% of the company’s stock.

About Quest Diagnostics

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE: DGX) is a provider of diagnostic information services, conducting laboratory tests that help physicians and other health care professionals diagnose, monitor and manage medical conditions. Its services include routine blood and other clinical laboratory testing, anatomic pathology, and specialized molecular and genetic testing. The company serves patients, physicians, hospitals, health plans, employers and government organizations. In addition to testing performed through its laboratories and patient service centers, Quest offers services such as workplace drug testing and diagnostic support for clinical research.