Naples Money Management LLC Acquires New Stake in Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX)

Naples Money Management LLC acquired a new stake in Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 19,000 shares of the medical research company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,620,000. Quest Diagnostics accounts for approximately 2.5% of Naples Money Management LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 12th biggest holding.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Knights of Columbus Asset Advisors LLC increased its stake in Quest Diagnostics by 2.3% in the 4th quarter. Knights of Columbus Asset Advisors LLC now owns 46,799 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $6,453,000 after buying an additional 1,038 shares during the period. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. increased its stake in Quest Diagnostics by 7.1% in the 4th quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 10,070 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $1,388,000 after buying an additional 664 shares during the period. Tyche Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new position in Quest Diagnostics in the 4th quarter valued at $222,000. Everence Capital Management Inc. increased its stake in Quest Diagnostics by 371.6% in the 4th quarter. Everence Capital Management Inc. now owns 14,950 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $2,061,000 after buying an additional 11,780 shares during the period. Finally, Strs Ohio increased its stake in Quest Diagnostics by 7.6% in the 4th quarter. Strs Ohio now owns 16,270 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $2,243,000 after buying an additional 1,150 shares during the period. 88.06% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have issued reports on DGX shares. Jefferies Financial Group raised shares of Quest Diagnostics from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $140.00 to $155.00 in a research note on Wednesday, February 7th. StockNews.com cut shares of Quest Diagnostics from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Leerink Partnrs reaffirmed a “market perform” rating on shares of Quest Diagnostics in a research note on Monday, February 26th. Truist Financial reaffirmed a “hold” rating and set a $145.00 price target on shares of Quest Diagnostics in a research note on Wednesday, March 20th. Finally, Barclays assumed coverage on shares of Quest Diagnostics in a research note on Wednesday, January 3rd. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $145.00 price target on the stock. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $144.18.

Insider Buying and Selling at Quest Diagnostics

In other Quest Diagnostics news, Director Vicky B. Gregg sold 2,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $126.64, for a total value of $316,600.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 16,329 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,067,904.56. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other news, Director Vicky B. Gregg sold 2,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $126.64, for a total transaction of $316,600.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 16,329 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,067,904.56. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, SVP Michael E. Prevoznik sold 5,611 shares of the 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 transaction, the senior vice president now owns 38,478 shares in the company, valued at $4,843,610.64. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 15,150 shares of company stock worth $1,913,202. Corporate insiders own 0.79% of the company’s stock.

Quest Diagnostics Trading Up 2.0 %

NYSE:DGX traded up $2.53 on Friday, reaching $128.44. The stock had a trading volume of 1,557,566 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,035,946. The company has a market cap of $14.26 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.15, a P/E/G ratio of 2.74 and a beta of 0.91. 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 firm’s fifty day moving average is $128.28 and its two-hundred day moving average is $130.72. Quest Diagnostics Incorporated has a 12-month low of $119.59 and a 12-month high of $148.62.

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 1st. The medical research company reported $2.15 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.11 by $0.04. The company 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%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 1.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.98 EPS. Equities analysts expect that Quest Diagnostics Incorporated will post 8.75 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Quest Diagnostics Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 22nd. Shareholders of record on Monday, April 8th will be issued a $0.75 dividend. This represents a $3.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.34%. This is a positive change from Quest Diagnostics’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.71. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 5th. Quest Diagnostics’s dividend payout ratio is 37.92%.

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.