FY2024 EPS Forecast for Quest Diagnostics Lifted by Analyst

Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX) – Equities research analysts at Zacks Research lifted their FY2024 earnings per share estimates for Quest Diagnostics in a research note issued to investors on Tuesday, November 12th. Zacks Research analyst R. Department now anticipates that the medical research company will earn $8.88 per share for the year, up from their prior forecast of $8.83. The consensus estimate for Quest Diagnostics’ current full-year earnings is $8.90 per share. Zacks Research also issued estimates for Quest Diagnostics’ Q4 2024 earnings at $2.19 EPS, Q1 2025 earnings at $2.17 EPS, Q2 2025 earnings at $2.52 EPS, Q3 2025 earnings at $2.50 EPS, Q4 2025 earnings at $2.49 EPS, FY2025 earnings at $9.68 EPS, Q1 2026 earnings at $2.60 EPS and Q2 2026 earnings at $2.62 EPS.

Other analysts have also issued research reports about the company. Piper Sandler increased their target price on Quest Diagnostics from $150.00 to $165.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, October 28th. Citigroup increased their price objective on Quest Diagnostics from $165.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Barclays increased their price objective on Quest Diagnostics from $154.00 to $168.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Evercore ISI initiated coverage on Quest Diagnostics in a report on Wednesday, August 28th. They set an “in-line” rating and a $165.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Baird R W upgraded Quest Diagnostics from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $164.58.

Quest Diagnostics Price Performance

DGX opened at $160.39 on Thursday. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $153.84 and a 200-day moving average of $147.26. The firm has a market capitalization of $17.90 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.56, a PEG ratio of 2.79 and a beta of 0.89. Quest Diagnostics has a 12-month low of $123.04 and a 12-month high of $162.59. The company has a quick ratio of 1.17, a current ratio of 1.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.83.

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The medical research company reported $2.30 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.26 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $2.49 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.43 billion. Quest Diagnostics had a return on equity of 15.25% and a net margin of 8.82%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $2.22 earnings per share.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Rothschild Investment LLC bought a new position in Quest Diagnostics during the second quarter worth about $26,000. Innealta Capital LLC bought a new position in shares of Quest Diagnostics in the second quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Larson Financial Group LLC raised its stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 77.5% in the second quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 229 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. TruNorth Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Quest Diagnostics in the second quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Finally, EdgeRock Capital LLC bought a new position in shares of Quest Diagnostics in the second quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Institutional investors own 88.06% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, SVP Karthik Kuppusamy sold 1,775 shares of Quest Diagnostics stock in a transaction dated Monday, October 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $156.92, for a total transaction of $278,533.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 9,734 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,527,459.28. This trade represents a 15.42 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Michael J. Deppe sold 18,755 shares of Quest Diagnostics stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $154.05, for a total value of $2,889,207.75. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 34,941 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,382,661.05. This trade represents a 34.93 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 22,520 shares of company stock valued at $3,472,728. 0.79% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Quest Diagnostics Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 29th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, January 14th will be given a $0.75 dividend. This represents a $3.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.87%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, January 14th. Quest Diagnostics’s dividend payout ratio is currently 40.32%.

About Quest Diagnostics

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.