Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX) Stock: Insider Catherine Doherty Sells 22,105 Shares

Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX) EVP Catherine Doherty sold 22,105 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $248.02, for a total value of $5,482,482.10. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 71,949 shares in the company, valued at $17,844,790.98. The trade was a 23.50% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan.

Quest Diagnostics Stock Performance

Quest Diagnostics stock traded down $1.15 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $254.53. 969,133 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,002,252. The firm has a market cap of $28.00 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.16, a PEG ratio of 2.29 and a beta of 0.55. The company has a current ratio of 1.70, a quick ratio of 1.58 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $239.12 and a 200 day moving average of $213.35. Quest Diagnostics Incorporated has a 12 month low of $171.18 and a 12 month high of $259.00.

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 22nd. The medical research company reported $3.00 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.87 by $0.13. Quest Diagnostics had a net margin of 9.53% and a return on equity of 16.21%. The company had revenue of $3.10 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.05 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $2.60 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 10.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Quest Diagnostics Incorporated will post 11.29 earnings per share for the current year.

Quest Diagnostics Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, October 21st. Investors of record on Tuesday, October 6th were paid a $0.86 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, October 6th. This represents a $3.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.4%. Quest Diagnostics’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 34.26%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Next Level Wealth Planning LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics in the third quarter worth $25,000. Ancora Advisors LLC bought a new position in Quest Diagnostics during the second quarter worth $29,000. Frazier Financial Advisors LLC raised its stake in Quest Diagnostics by 492.9% during the 1st quarter. Frazier Financial Advisors LLC now owns 166 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 138 shares during the last quarter. Ameritas Advisory Services LLC acquired a new position in Quest Diagnostics during the 2nd quarter valued at $45,000. Finally, Dunhill Financial LLC acquired a new position in Quest Diagnostics during the 2nd quarter valued at $46,000. 88.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts recently commented on DGX shares. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $245.00 target price on shares of Quest Diagnostics in a report on Thursday, July 23rd. Barclays boosted their target price on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $250.00 to $260.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 7th. UBS Group restated a “neutral” rating and set a $250.00 price target on shares of Quest Diagnostics in a report on Monday, October 19th. Weiss Ratings raised Quest Diagnostics from a “buy (a)” rating to a “buy (a+)” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 21st. Finally, Truist Financial lifted their price objective on Quest Diagnostics from $250.00 to $260.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, September 21st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have given a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $248.70.

Quest Diagnostics Company Profile

Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE: DGX) is a provider of diagnostic information services. The company performs laboratory testing that helps physicians, hospitals and other healthcare providers diagnose, treat and monitor diseases and health conditions. Its services include routine blood and other specimen testing, pathology, molecular and genetic testing, and specialized diagnostic services.

Quest Diagnostics serves a broad range of customers, including hospitals, physician practices, health plans, employers, government agencies and individual consumers.