Fred Alger Management LLC Makes New $2.66 Million Investment in Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX)

Fred Alger Management LLC bought a new stake in Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm bought 17,633 shares of the medical research company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,660,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of DGX. Sierra Ocean LLC bought a new position in Quest Diagnostics in the fourth quarter valued at about $33,000. First Financial Corp IN acquired a new stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $38,000. FPC Investment Advisory Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $45,000. Global Trust Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in Quest Diagnostics during the 4th quarter worth approximately $49,000. Finally, SBI Securities Co. Ltd. bought a new position in Quest Diagnostics in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $54,000. Institutional investors own 88.06% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO J. E. Davis sold 39,191 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $168.46, for a total transaction of $6,602,115.86. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 127,623 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $21,499,370.58. This represents a 23.49 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, SVP Michael E. Prevoznik sold 604 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $170.99, for a total value of $103,277.96. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 39,845 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,813,096.55. The trade was a 1.49 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 54,250 shares of company stock worth $9,188,295. Corporate insiders own 8.16% of the company’s stock.

Quest Diagnostics Price Performance

DGX stock opened at $176.96 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.02, a current ratio of 1.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.82. The firm has a market cap of $19.75 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.01, a PEG ratio of 2.16 and a beta of 0.52. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $169.70 and its 200 day simple moving average is $162.89. Quest Diagnostics Incorporated has a 12-month low of $135.47 and a 12-month high of $179.32.

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 22nd. The medical research company reported $2.21 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.15 by $0.06. Quest Diagnostics had a return on equity of 15.07% and a net margin of 8.80%. The company had revenue of $2.65 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.63 billion. On average, analysts expect that Quest Diagnostics Incorporated will post 9.7 earnings per share for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Piper Sandler upped their price target on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $180.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, April 28th. Mizuho upped their target price on Quest Diagnostics from $178.00 to $189.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 9th. Redburn Atlantic began coverage on Quest Diagnostics in a research note on Wednesday, April 2nd. They set a “buy” rating and a $195.00 price target on the stock. StockNews.com downgraded Quest Diagnostics from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, Citigroup downgraded shares of Quest Diagnostics from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $185.00 target price on the stock. in a research report on Tuesday, March 4th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $185.73.

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.