Catherine T. Doherty Sells 824 Shares of Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX) Stock

Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX) EVP Catherine T. Doherty sold 824 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $172.61, for a total transaction of $142,230.64. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 69,178 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,940,814.58. This trade represents a 1.18 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website.

Quest Diagnostics Price Performance

Shares of DGX opened at $172.86 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $19.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.48, a P/E/G ratio of 2.16 and a beta of 0.91. Quest Diagnostics Incorporated has a fifty-two week low of $123.66 and a fifty-two week high of $176.44. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.82, a current ratio of 1.10 and a quick ratio of 1.02. The business’s 50-day moving average is $159.63 and its 200-day moving average is $156.78.

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

Quest Diagnostics Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 21st. Investors of record on Monday, April 7th will be paid a $0.80 dividend. This is a boost from Quest Diagnostics’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.75. The ex-dividend date is Monday, April 7th. This represents a $3.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.85%. Quest Diagnostics’s payout ratio is presently 41.61%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have commented on DGX shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $173.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Mizuho boosted their price objective on Quest Diagnostics from $177.00 to $178.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Robert W. Baird set a $189.00 price objective on Quest Diagnostics in a report on Friday, January 31st. UBS Group boosted their price objective on Quest Diagnostics from $166.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded Quest Diagnostics from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $178.23.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Quest Diagnostics

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Sierra Ocean LLC bought a new stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Versant Capital Management Inc grew its stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 340.4% in the 4th quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 251 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $38,000 after buying an additional 194 shares in the last quarter. First Financial Corp IN bought a new stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $38,000. FPC Investment Advisory Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $45,000. Finally, Global Trust Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $49,000. Institutional investors own 88.06% of the company’s stock.

About Quest Diagnostics

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.