Handelsbanken Fonder AB Decreases Position in Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX)

Handelsbanken Fonder AB cut its stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX) by 25.9% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 81,119 shares of the medical research company’s stock after selling 28,408 shares during the quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB’s holdings in Quest Diagnostics were worth $11,185,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Raymond James & Associates raised its position in Quest Diagnostics by 103.3% during the fourth quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 148,251 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $20,441,000 after purchasing an additional 75,315 shares during the period. CHURCHILL MANAGEMENT Corp bought a new stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics during the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,483,000. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 14.6% during the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 2,613,793 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $318,517,000 after acquiring an additional 333,947 shares during the last quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 201.5% during the 4th quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 31,912 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $4,400,000 after acquiring an additional 21,327 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Strs Ohio lifted its stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 7.6% during the 4th quarter. Strs Ohio now owns 16,270 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $2,243,000 after acquiring an additional 1,150 shares during the last quarter. 88.06% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, SVP Michael E. Prevoznik sold 5,611 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $125.88, for a total transaction of $706,312.68. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 38,478 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,843,610.64. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In related news, SVP Michael E. Prevoznik sold 5,611 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $125.88, for a total transaction of $706,312.68. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 38,478 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,843,610.64. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Vicky B. Gregg sold 2,500 shares of Quest Diagnostics stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $126.64, for a total value of $316,600.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 16,329 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,067,904.56. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 15,150 shares of company stock worth $1,913,202 in the last ninety days. 0.79% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Quest Diagnostics Trading Up 5.1 %

Shares of NYSE:DGX opened at $136.74 on Wednesday. Quest Diagnostics Incorporated has a 12-month low of $119.59 and a 12-month high of $148.62. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $128.50 and its 200-day simple moving average is $131.03. The company has a market capitalization of $15.19 billion, a PE ratio of 18.26, a P/E/G ratio of 2.81 and a beta of 0.91. The company has a current ratio of 1.31, a quick ratio of 1.20 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70.

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 1st. The medical research company reported $2.15 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.11 by $0.04. Quest Diagnostics had a return on equity of 15.79% and a net margin of 9.23%. The business had revenue of $2.29 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.25 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.98 EPS. The business’s revenue was down 1.9% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Quest Diagnostics Incorporated will post 8.75 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Quest Diagnostics Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 22nd. Investors of record on Monday, April 8th were paid a dividend of $0.75 per share. This represents a $3.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.19%. This is an increase from Quest Diagnostics’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.71. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, April 5th. Quest Diagnostics’s payout ratio is 37.92%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on DGX shares. StockNews.com lowered Quest Diagnostics from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 17th. Barclays began coverage on Quest Diagnostics in a research note on Wednesday, January 3rd. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $145.00 price target for the company. TheStreet downgraded Quest Diagnostics from a “b-” rating to a “c” rating in a report on Monday, February 5th. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded Quest Diagnostics from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $140.00 to $155.00 in a report on Wednesday, February 7th. Finally, Truist Financial restated a “hold” rating and set a $145.00 price objective on shares of Quest Diagnostics in a report on Wednesday, March 20th. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Quest Diagnostics has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $144.18.

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.