Brokerages Set Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX) PT at $169.15

Shares of Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX) have earned an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the fifteen research firms that are covering the firm, Marketbeat.com reports. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, six have given a buy recommendation and one has issued a strong buy recommendation on the company. The average 1-year target price among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $169.15.

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Bank of America lifted their target price on Quest Diagnostics from $179.00 to $182.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, December 13th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Quest Diagnostics from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, December 20th. Baird R W upgraded shares of Quest Diagnostics from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Barclays lifted their price target on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $154.00 to $168.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Finally, Piper Sandler increased their price objective on Quest Diagnostics from $150.00 to $165.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, October 28th.

Quest Diagnostics Stock Performance

Shares of DGX opened at $151.92 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $16.96 billion, a PE ratio of 20.42, a P/E/G ratio of 2.69 and a beta of 0.89. The company has a quick ratio of 1.17, a current ratio of 1.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.83. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $157.03 and a 200 day moving average price of $151.55. Quest Diagnostics has a 52-week low of $123.04 and a 52-week high of $165.32.

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 22nd. The medical research company reported $2.30 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.26 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $2.49 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.43 billion. Quest Diagnostics had a net margin of 8.82% and a return on equity of 15.25%. The business’s revenue was up 8.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm posted $2.22 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Quest Diagnostics will post 8.9 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Quest Diagnostics Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 29th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, January 14th will be given a $0.75 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, January 14th. This represents a $3.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.97%. Quest Diagnostics’s payout ratio is 40.32%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CAO Michael J. Deppe sold 18,755 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 34,941 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,382,661.05. The trade was a 34.93 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, SVP Karthik Kuppusamy sold 1,775 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, October 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $156.92, for a total transaction of $278,533.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 9,734 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,527,459.28. The trade was a 15.42 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.79% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Quest Diagnostics

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Rothschild Investment LLC bought a new stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics during the 2nd quarter worth about $26,000. Innealta Capital LLC bought a new position in shares of Quest Diagnostics in the second quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Larson Financial Group LLC lifted its stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 77.5% in the second quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 229 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc boosted its holdings in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 340.4% during the 4th quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 251 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $38,000 after buying an additional 194 shares during the period. Finally, Sunbelt Securities Inc. acquired a new position in Quest Diagnostics in the 2nd quarter valued at $40,000. 88.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.