Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX) to Issue $0.80 Quarterly Dividend

Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX) announced a quarterly dividend on Wednesday, May 14th, RTT News reports. Shareholders of record on Monday, July 7th will be given a dividend of 0.80 per share by the medical research company on Monday, July 21st. This represents a $3.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.86%.

Quest Diagnostics has raised its dividend payment by an average of 6.9% per year over the last three years and has raised its dividend every year for the last 14 years. Quest Diagnostics has a payout ratio of 30.4% meaning its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Equities analysts expect Quest Diagnostics to earn $10.49 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $3.20 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 30.5%.

Quest Diagnostics Stock Performance

Shares of Quest Diagnostics stock opened at $172.27 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $19.23 billion, a PE ratio of 22.40, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.16 and a beta of 0.52. The company has a quick ratio of 1.02, a current ratio of 1.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.82. Quest Diagnostics has a 52 week low of $135.47 and a 52 week high of $179.32. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $169.78 and its 200-day simple moving average is $163.25.

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, April 22nd. The medical research company reported $2.21 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.15 by $0.06. The company had revenue of $2.65 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.63 billion. Quest Diagnostics had a net margin of 8.80% and a return on equity of 15.07%. Equities analysts forecast that Quest Diagnostics will post 9.7 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently issued reports on DGX. Robert W. Baird boosted their price objective on Quest Diagnostics from $191.00 to $194.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Redburn Atlantic assumed coverage on Quest Diagnostics in a research note on Wednesday, April 2nd. They issued a “buy” rating and a $195.00 price objective on the stock. StockNews.com lowered Quest Diagnostics from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Citigroup downgraded Quest Diagnostics from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $185.00 price target on the stock. in a report on Tuesday, March 4th. Finally, Barclays boosted their price objective on Quest Diagnostics from $175.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Eight 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.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $185.73.

Insider Transactions at Quest Diagnostics

In other news, SVP Michael E. Prevoznik sold 604 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $170.99, for a total transaction of $103,277.96. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 39,845 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,813,096.55. This represents a 1.49% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Mark E. Delaney sold 874 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, May 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $175.72, for a total value of $153,579.28. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 8,372 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,471,127.84. This trade represents a 9.45% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 55,124 shares of company stock worth $9,341,875. Company insiders own 8.16% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Quest Diagnostics

An institutional investor recently bought a new position in Quest Diagnostics stock. Brighton Jones LLC acquired a new position in Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund acquired 2,144 shares of the medical research company’s stock, valued at approximately $323,000. 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.