Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX) Earns Buy Rating from Analysts at Redburn Atlantic

Analysts at Redburn Atlantic assumed coverage on shares of Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX) in a research note issued to investors on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage set a “buy” rating and a $195.00 price target on the medical research company’s stock. Redburn Atlantic’s target price indicates a potential upside of 15.08% from the company’s previous close.

Several other equities research analysts have also issued reports on DGX. Citigroup lowered shares of Quest Diagnostics from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $185.00 target price for the company. in a report on Tuesday, March 4th. UBS Group boosted 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 increased their price target on Quest Diagnostics from $179.00 to $182.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, December 13th. Truist Financial boosted their price objective on Quest Diagnostics from $172.00 to $182.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Barclays increased their target price on Quest Diagnostics from $168.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $179.57.

Quest Diagnostics Stock Up 0.1 %

Shares of NYSE DGX opened at $169.45 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.10, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.82. Quest Diagnostics has a 12-month low of $125.42 and a 12-month high of $178.87. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $167.34 and its 200-day moving average price is $159.30. The stock has a market capitalization of $18.80 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.03, a P/E/G ratio of 2.16 and a beta of 0.92.

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

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Quest Diagnostics news, EVP Catherine T. Doherty sold 5,370 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $174.13, for a total value of $935,078.10. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 68,068 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,852,680.84. The trade was a 7.31 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Vicky B. Gregg sold 1,250 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $164.57, for a total transaction of $205,712.50. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 16,867 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,775,802.19. This trade represents a 6.90 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 14,157 shares of company stock valued at $2,423,755 over the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.79% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Quest Diagnostics

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of DGX. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD boosted its stake in Quest Diagnostics by 42.5% in the 4th quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 5,490,278 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $828,265,000 after purchasing an additional 1,637,525 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics during the fourth quarter worth $191,823,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its holdings in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 60.4% during the fourth quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 2,433,913 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $367,180,000 after buying an additional 916,898 shares during the last quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. increased its position in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 83.7% in the 4th quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 1,093,042 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $164,896,000 after acquiring an additional 497,995 shares during the period. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in Quest Diagnostics in the 4th quarter worth $67,447,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 88.06% of the company’s stock.

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.