KBC Group NV Reduces Holdings in Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX)

KBC Group NV lowered its position in shares of Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX) by 2.8% in the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 29,666 shares of the medical research company’s stock after selling 844 shares during the period. KBC Group NV’s holdings in Quest Diagnostics were worth $4,606,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Rothschild Investment LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Larson Financial Group LLC lifted its stake in Quest Diagnostics by 77.5% during the second quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 229 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. Innealta Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics in the second quarter valued at $31,000. TruNorth Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in Quest Diagnostics during the second quarter worth about $33,000. Finally, EdgeRock Capital LLC purchased a new position in Quest Diagnostics in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $35,000. 88.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Quest Diagnostics Stock Performance

NYSE:DGX opened at $160.44 on Monday. The company has a current ratio of 1.25, a quick ratio of 1.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.83. The company has a market capitalization of $17.91 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.56, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.77 and a beta of 0.89. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $153.99 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $147.47. Quest Diagnostics Incorporated has a twelve month low of $123.04 and a twelve month high of $162.59.

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 22nd. The medical research company reported $2.30 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.26 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $2.49 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.43 billion. Quest Diagnostics had a return on equity of 15.25% and a net margin of 8.82%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 8.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $2.22 EPS. As a group, research analysts expect that Quest Diagnostics Incorporated will post 8.9 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Quest Diagnostics Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 29th. Investors of record on Tuesday, January 14th will be given a dividend of $0.75 per share. This represents a $3.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.87%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, January 14th. Quest Diagnostics’s dividend payout ratio is presently 40.32%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

DGX has been the topic of several analyst reports. UBS Group increased their price objective on Quest Diagnostics from $165.00 to $166.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Truist Financial lifted their price objective on Quest Diagnostics from $158.00 to $165.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, October 7th. Baird R W upgraded shares of Quest Diagnostics from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Quest Diagnostics from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, November 8th. Finally, Piper Sandler increased their price objective on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $150.00 to $165.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, October 28th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Quest Diagnostics has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $164.58.

Insider Activity at Quest Diagnostics

In other Quest Diagnostics news, SVP Karthik Kuppusamy sold 1,990 shares of Quest Diagnostics stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $153.26, for a total value of $304,987.40. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 11,459 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,756,206.34. The trade was a 14.80 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Michael J. Deppe sold 18,755 shares of the stock in a transaction on 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 transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 34,941 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,382,661.05. This represents a 34.93 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 22,520 shares of company stock valued at $3,472,728. 0.79% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.