Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX) SVP Sells $789,310.00 in Stock

Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX) SVP Michael E. Prevoznik sold 4,643 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $170.00, for a total value of $789,310.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 38,117 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,479,890. This represents a 10.86 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink.

Quest Diagnostics Stock Performance

Shares of DGX stock opened at $166.96 on Friday. Quest Diagnostics Incorporated has a one year low of $125.42 and a one year high of $178.87. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $165.18 and a 200 day moving average price of $158.60. The firm has a market capitalization of $18.53 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.71, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.16 and a beta of 0.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.82, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a current ratio of 1.10.

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The medical research company reported $2.23 EPS 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%. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Quest Diagnostics Incorporated will post 9.7 EPS for the current year.

Quest Diagnostics Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed 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. The ex-dividend date is Monday, April 7th. This is an increase from Quest Diagnostics’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.75. This represents a $3.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.92%. Quest Diagnostics’s payout ratio is presently 41.61%.

Institutional Trading of Quest Diagnostics

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in Quest Diagnostics during the 3rd quarter valued at $224,000. OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC raised its stake in Quest Diagnostics by 6.2% during the 3rd quarter. OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC now owns 3,562 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $553,000 after purchasing an additional 209 shares during the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC raised its stake in Quest Diagnostics by 92.3% during the 3rd quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 19,920 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $3,093,000 after purchasing an additional 9,559 shares during the last quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC raised its stake in Quest Diagnostics by 7.7% during the 3rd quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC now owns 92,830 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $14,412,000 after purchasing an additional 6,619 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Claro Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Quest Diagnostics during the 3rd quarter valued at $286,000. 88.06% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

DGX has been the topic of several research reports. Leerink Partnrs raised Quest Diagnostics from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, January 6th. UBS Group upped their target price on Quest Diagnostics from $166.00 to $170.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Bank of America upped their target price on Quest Diagnostics from $179.00 to $182.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, December 13th. Mizuho upped their target price on Quest Diagnostics from $177.00 to $178.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, Barclays upped their price target on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $168.00 to $175.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Quest Diagnostics presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $178.38.

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.