Quest Diagnostics Incorporated $DGX Stock Position Lifted by BankPlus Trust Department

BankPlus Trust Department boosted its stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX) by 6.5% during the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 12,289 shares of the medical research company’s stock after purchasing an additional 753 shares during the period. BankPlus Trust Department’s holdings in Quest Diagnostics were worth $2,207,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD grew its position in Quest Diagnostics by 9.0% during the first quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 5,984,238 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $1,012,534,000 after purchasing an additional 493,960 shares in the last quarter. Boston Partners bought a new stake in Quest Diagnostics in the first quarter worth approximately $388,724,000. Alliancebernstein L.P. grew its position in Quest Diagnostics by 7.7% in the first quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 1,177,572 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $199,245,000 after acquiring an additional 84,530 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC grew its position in Quest Diagnostics by 1.1% in the first quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 1,013,030 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $171,405,000 after acquiring an additional 10,651 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Ameriprise Financial Inc. grew its position in Quest Diagnostics by 0.6% in the first quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 961,154 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $162,628,000 after acquiring an additional 6,079 shares in the last quarter. 88.06% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other news, SVP Karthik Kuppusamy sold 8,269 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $167.40, for a total value of $1,384,230.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president owned 10,660 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,784,484. This represents a 43.68% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, SVP Michael E. Prevoznik sold 28,288 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $187.12, for a total transaction of $5,293,250.56. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president owned 38,117 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,132,453.04. This represents a 42.60% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 53,186 shares of company stock worth $9,647,471. 8.16% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have commented on the stock. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their target price on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $160.00 to $178.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 23rd. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Quest Diagnostics from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Sunday, August 10th. Robert W. Baird reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $194.00 price objective on shares of Quest Diagnostics in a report on Monday, August 25th. Evercore ISI set a $185.00 price objective on shares of Quest Diagnostics in a report on Wednesday, July 23rd. Finally, Barclays upped their price objective on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $185.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, October 2nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have assigned a Buy rating and ten have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $186.31.

Quest Diagnostics Price Performance

NYSE:DGX opened at $181.95 on Wednesday. The stock has a market cap of $20.35 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.79, a PEG ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 0.56. Quest Diagnostics Incorporated has a one year low of $146.53 and a one year high of $191.49. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $180.42 and a 200 day moving average price of $175.22. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71, a current ratio of 1.09 and a quick ratio of 0.99.

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, July 22nd. The medical research company reported $2.62 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.57 by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $2.76 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.73 billion. Quest Diagnostics had a net margin of 9.01% and a return on equity of 15.24%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 15.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $2.35 EPS. Quest Diagnostics has set its FY 2025 guidance at 9.630-9.830 EPS. Analysts anticipate that Quest Diagnostics Incorporated will post 9.7 earnings per share for the current year.

Quest Diagnostics Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, October 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, October 3rd will be paid a $0.80 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 3rd. This represents a $3.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.8%. Quest Diagnostics’s dividend payout ratio is currently 38.32%.

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.