Strs Ohio Acquires 1,150 Shares of Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX)

Strs Ohio lifted its holdings in Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX) by 7.6% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 16,270 shares of the medical research company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,150 shares during the quarter. Strs Ohio’s holdings in Quest Diagnostics were worth $2,243,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in DGX. Lecap Asset Management Ltd. bought a new stake in Quest Diagnostics during the 4th quarter worth about $985,000. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System bought a new stake in Quest Diagnostics during the fourth quarter worth about $938,000. Aquila Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in Quest Diagnostics during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,103,000. Simplicity Solutions LLC grew its stake in Quest Diagnostics by 13.2% in the fourth quarter. Simplicity Solutions LLC now owns 2,091 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $288,000 after purchasing an additional 244 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Clarius Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Quest Diagnostics during the 4th quarter worth approximately $201,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 88.06% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms recently weighed in on DGX. Barclays started coverage on shares of Quest Diagnostics in a research note on Wednesday, January 3rd. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $145.00 target price for the company. Truist Financial restated a “hold” rating and set a $145.00 price objective on shares of Quest Diagnostics in a research note on Wednesday, March 20th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Quest Diagnostics from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Leerink Partnrs reissued a “market perform” rating on shares of Quest Diagnostics in a research report on Monday, February 26th. Finally, SVB Leerink initiated coverage on Quest Diagnostics in a research report on Monday, February 26th. They issued a “market perform” rating and a $135.00 price objective for the company. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $144.18.

Quest Diagnostics Stock Performance

DGX opened at $128.44 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70, a current ratio of 1.31 and a quick ratio of 1.20. The company has a market capitalization of $14.26 billion, a PE ratio of 17.15, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.74 and a beta of 0.91. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $128.32 and a 200 day simple moving average of $130.77. Quest Diagnostics Incorporated has a 1 year low of $119.59 and a 1 year high of $148.62.

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

Quest Diagnostics Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 22nd. Investors of record on Monday, April 8th will be paid a $0.75 dividend. This is a boost from Quest Diagnostics’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.71. This represents a $3.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.34%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 5th. Quest Diagnostics’s payout ratio is 37.92%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Quest Diagnostics news, EVP Catherine T. Doherty sold 821 shares of Quest Diagnostics stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $126.14, for a total value of $103,560.94. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 70,800 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,930,712. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In related news, EVP Catherine T. Doherty sold 821 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $126.14, for a total value of $103,560.94. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 70,800 shares in the company, valued at $8,930,712. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, SVP Michael E. Prevoznik sold 5,611 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $125.88, for a total transaction of $706,312.68. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 38,478 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,843,610.64. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 15,150 shares of company stock valued at $1,913,202 over the last 90 days. 0.79% of the stock is owned by corporate 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.