Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX) Stock Has Consensus Target Price of $248.70 According to Analysts

Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX) has been given an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by the nine analysts that are currently covering the stock, Marketbeat reports. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, three have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating on the company. The average 12-month price target among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $248.70.

Several research analysts have recently commented on the company. Wall Street Zen raised Quest Diagnostics from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 28th. UBS Group restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $250.00 price objective on shares of Quest Diagnostics in a research report on Monday, October 19th. Mizuho increased their target price on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $235.00 to $260.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, July 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on Quest Diagnostics from $220.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 28th. Finally, Robert W. Baird set a $262.00 target price on Quest Diagnostics in a research report on Friday, October 23rd.

Insider Transactions at Quest Diagnostics

In other Quest Diagnostics news, Director Gary M. Pfeiffer sold 1,203 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, October 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $243.00, for a total value of $292,329.00. Following the sale, the director owned 29,802 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,241,886. This represents a 3.88% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, SVP Michael E. Prevoznik sold 22,677 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 37,557 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,130,482.27. The trade was a 37.65% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 55,985 shares of company stock worth $13,715,017. 0.88% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Quest Diagnostics

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Next Level Wealth Planning LLC bought a new position in Quest Diagnostics in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Ancora Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Quest Diagnostics during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $29,000. Frazier Financial Advisors LLC increased its stake in Quest Diagnostics by 492.9% in the first quarter. Frazier Financial Advisors LLC now owns 166 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 138 shares during the period. Ameritas Advisory Services LLC acquired a new stake in Quest Diagnostics in the 2nd quarter valued at about $45,000. Finally, Dunhill Financial LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics during the second quarter worth about $46,000. 88.06% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Quest Diagnostics Stock Up 0.2%

Shares of NYSE DGX opened at $255.36 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.58, a current ratio of 1.70 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $239.34 and a 200 day moving average price of $213.68. Quest Diagnostics has a 52-week low of $171.18 and a 52-week high of $259.00. The stock has a market cap of $28.09 billion, a PE ratio of 22.72, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.25 and a beta of 0.55.

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

Quest Diagnostics Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, October 21st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, October 6th were given a $0.86 dividend. This represents a $3.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, October 6th. Quest Diagnostics’s dividend payout ratio is presently 34.26%.

About Quest Diagnostics

Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE: DGX) is a provider of diagnostic information services. The company performs laboratory testing that helps physicians, hospitals and other healthcare providers diagnose, treat and monitor diseases and health conditions. Its services include routine blood and other specimen testing, pathology, molecular and genetic testing, and specialized diagnostic services.

Quest Diagnostics serves a broad range of customers, including hospitals, physician practices, health plans, employers, government agencies and individual consumers.