ProShare Advisors LLC Has $4.91 Million Stock Holdings in Quest Diagnostics Incorporated $DGX

ProShare Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX) by 53.0% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 27,316 shares of the medical research company’s stock after purchasing an additional 9,461 shares during the quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC’s holdings in Quest Diagnostics were worth $4,907,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the business. Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. raised its stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 126.9% during the second quarter. Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. now owns 152 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 85 shares during the last quarter. AlphaQuest LLC raised its position in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 18,400.0% during the 2nd quarter. AlphaQuest LLC now owns 185 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 184 shares during the last quarter. Ameritas Advisory Services LLC acquired a new position in shares of Quest Diagnostics in the 2nd quarter valued at $35,000. Larson Financial Group LLC increased its holdings in Quest Diagnostics by 101.9% in the first quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 323 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $55,000 after purchasing an additional 163 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd lifted its stake in Quest Diagnostics by 1,495.2% in the first quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 335 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $57,000 after buying an additional 314 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 88.06% of the company’s stock.

Quest Diagnostics Trading Down 0.3%

Shares of NYSE:DGX opened at $186.97 on Friday. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $182.97 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $178.24. Quest Diagnostics Incorporated has a one year low of $148.70 and a one year high of $197.55. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71, a current ratio of 1.13 and a quick ratio of 1.04. The stock has a market capitalization of $20.80 billion, a PE ratio of 21.94, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 0.58.

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 21st. The medical research company reported $2.60 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.51 by $0.09. Quest Diagnostics had a return on equity of 15.47% and a net margin of 8.91%.The firm had revenue of $2.82 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.73 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.30 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 13.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Quest Diagnostics has set its FY 2025 guidance at 9.760-9.840 EPS. On average, equities analysts forecast that Quest Diagnostics Incorporated will post 9.7 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Quest Diagnostics Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 28th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, January 13th will be given a dividend of $0.80 per share. This represents a $3.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, January 13th. Quest Diagnostics’s dividend payout ratio is 37.56%.

Insider Activity

In other news, SVP Michael E. Prevoznik sold 28,288 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $187.12, for a total value of $5,293,250.56. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 38,117 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,132,453.04. This trade represents a 42.60% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director Gary M. Pfeiffer sold 1,482 shares of Quest Diagnostics stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, October 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $182.40, for a total value of $270,316.80. Following the transaction, the director owned 29,431 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,368,214.40. This represents a 4.79% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold a total of 36,679 shares of company stock valued at $6,833,732 in the last quarter. Company insiders own 8.16% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have recently commented on DGX shares. Mizuho upped their price target on Quest Diagnostics from $190.00 to $210.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, October 17th. Evercore ISI upped their price objective on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $185.00 to $190.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Truist Financial lifted their target price on Quest Diagnostics from $195.00 to $205.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 22nd. Piper Sandler increased their price target on Quest Diagnostics from $190.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, October 27th. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered Quest Diagnostics from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, November 8th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have assigned a Buy rating and ten have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $196.31.

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.