Lowe Brockenbrough & Co. Inc. Sells 514 Shares of Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX)

Lowe Brockenbrough & Co. Inc. reduced its stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX) by 2.9% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 17,039 shares of the medical research company’s stock after selling 514 shares during the period. Lowe Brockenbrough & Co. Inc.’s holdings in Quest Diagnostics were worth $2,571,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of DGX. Sierra Ocean LLC purchased a new stake in Quest Diagnostics in the 4th quarter valued at $33,000. Versant Capital Management Inc raised its holdings in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 340.4% in the fourth quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 251 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $38,000 after purchasing an additional 194 shares during the last quarter. First Financial Corp IN purchased a new stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics in the fourth quarter valued at about $38,000. FPC Investment Advisory Inc. bought a new position in shares of Quest Diagnostics during the fourth quarter valued at about $45,000. Finally, Global Trust Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in Quest Diagnostics in the 4th quarter worth about $49,000. 88.06% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Quest Diagnostics

In related news, Director Vicky B. Gregg sold 1,250 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $164.57, for a total value of $205,712.50. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 16,867 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,775,802.19. This trade represents a 6.90 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, SVP Mark E. Delaney sold 403 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $164.30, for a total transaction of $66,212.90. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 4,624 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $759,723.20. This represents a 8.02 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 14,157 shares of company stock valued at $2,423,755 in the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.79% of the company’s stock.

Quest Diagnostics Stock Down 1.0 %

Shares of NYSE DGX opened at $166.25 on Friday. Quest Diagnostics Incorporated has a 52 week low of $125.42 and a 52 week high of $178.87. The company has a market cap of $18.45 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.62, a P/E/G ratio of 2.16 and a beta of 0.92. 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 business has a 50-day simple moving average of $164.88 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $158.53.

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The medical research company reported $2.23 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.19 by $0.04. Quest Diagnostics had a net margin of 8.80% and a return on equity of 15.07%. Research analysts anticipate that Quest Diagnostics Incorporated will post 9.7 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Quest Diagnostics Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 21st. Investors of record on Monday, April 7th will be given a dividend of $0.80 per share. This represents a $3.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.92%. This is a boost from Quest Diagnostics’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.75. The ex-dividend date is Monday, April 7th. Quest Diagnostics’s payout ratio is presently 41.61%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

DGX has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Barclays boosted their target price on Quest Diagnostics from $168.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Leerink Partnrs raised Quest Diagnostics from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, January 6th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Quest Diagnostics from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Robert W. Baird raised their price objective on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $190.00 to $191.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday. Finally, Piper Sandler reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $180.00 target price (up from $165.00) on shares of Quest Diagnostics in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $178.38.

Quest Diagnostics 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.