Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX) Sees Large Decline in Short Interest

Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX) was the target of a significant decline in short interest in February. As of February 13th, there was short interest totaling 4,771,280 shares, a decline of 18.1% from the January 29th total of 5,823,118 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 1,457,533 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 3.3 days. Approximately 4.7% of the shares of the stock are sold short. Approximately 4.7% of the shares of the stock are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 1,457,533 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 3.3 days.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have recently commented on DGX. Jefferies Financial Group increased their target price on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $215.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 10th. Citigroup upped their price objective on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $190.00 to $215.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 10th. Truist Financial raised their target price on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $205.00 to $220.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 11th. UBS Group boosted their target price on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $190.00 to $210.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 11th. Finally, Evercore set a $220.00 price target on Quest Diagnostics in a research note on Wednesday, February 11th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $210.29.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, SVP Michael E. Prevoznik sold 1,111 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $204.83, for a total transaction of $227,566.13. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 38,371 shares in the company, valued at $7,859,531.93. This represents a 2.81% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, SVP Patrick Plewman sold 958 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $204.83, for a total value of $196,227.14. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 15,838 shares in the company, valued at $3,244,097.54. This trade represents a 5.70% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold 9,164 shares of company stock worth $1,872,363 over the last three months. Insiders own 8.16% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Quest Diagnostics

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in DGX. Lebenthal Global Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 117.5% in the 3rd quarter. Lebenthal Global Advisors LLC now owns 5,034 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $959,000 after buying an additional 2,720 shares during the last quarter. Rakuten Investment Management Inc. bought a new stake in Quest Diagnostics during the third quarter worth $4,713,000. Pacer Advisors Inc. boosted its position in Quest Diagnostics by 2,531.6% in the third quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 450,898 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $85,932,000 after purchasing an additional 433,764 shares during the last quarter. TKG Advisors LLC boosted its position in Quest Diagnostics by 125.1% in the third quarter. TKG Advisors LLC now owns 14,596 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $2,782,000 after purchasing an additional 8,112 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Cibc World Market Inc. grew its stake in Quest Diagnostics by 209.6% in the 3rd quarter. Cibc World Market Inc. now owns 7,765 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $1,480,000 after purchasing an additional 5,257 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 88.06% of the company’s stock.

Quest Diagnostics News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Quest Diagnostics this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Zacks raised multiyear and several quarterly targets — FY2026 to $10.57 (from $10.26), FY2027 to $11.42 and FY2028 to $12.54, and boosted multiple quarters (including Q2/Q3/Q4 2026 and several 2027 quarters). These upward revisions imply a stronger medium‑term earnings trajectory that can support a higher valuation. MarketBeat: DGX analyst notes
• Neutral Sentiment: Small/isolated tweaks — Q3 2027 was nudged +$0.01 to $2.90 and Q1 2026 was raised modestly to $2.37; these changes are too minor on their own to move sentiment meaningfully. MarketBeat: DGX analyst notes
• Negative Sentiment: Zacks trimmed its Q1 2027 estimate to $2.54 from $2.59, a near‑term cut that may weigh on sentiment and explain muted or negative intraday moves despite the larger upward revisions elsewhere. MarketBeat: DGX analyst notes

Quest Diagnostics Stock Down 0.1%

NYSE DGX traded down $0.13 on Wednesday, hitting $208.23. 508,301 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,103,619. The company has a current ratio of 1.04, a quick ratio of 0.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72. The company has a market cap of $22.88 billion, a PE ratio of 23.80, a PEG ratio of 2.69 and a beta of 0.66. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $190.63 and a 200-day moving average of $185.47. Quest Diagnostics has a 12 month low of $157.20 and a 12 month high of $213.50.

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 10th. The medical research company reported $2.42 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.35 by $0.07. The firm had revenue of $2.81 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.75 billion. Quest Diagnostics had a net margin of 8.99% and a return on equity of 15.57%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 7.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $2.23 earnings per share. Quest Diagnostics has set its FY 2026 guidance at 9.45-9.650 EPS. As a group, analysts forecast that Quest Diagnostics will post 9.7 earnings per share for the current year.

Quest Diagnostics declared that its board has authorized a stock buyback program on Tuesday, February 10th that allows the company to buyback $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the medical research company to reacquire up to 4.7% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are usually an indication that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Quest Diagnostics Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 20th. Stockholders of record on Monday, April 6th will be given a dividend of $0.86 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, April 6th. This is a positive change from Quest Diagnostics’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.80. This represents a $3.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.7%. Quest Diagnostics’s payout ratio is currently 36.57%.

About Quest Diagnostics

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE: DGX) is a leading provider of diagnostic information services that supports clinical decision-making for patients, physicians and healthcare organizations. The company operates a network of clinical laboratories and patient service centers that perform a broad range of laboratory tests and diagnostic assays used in routine care, disease diagnosis, monitoring and screening.

Its services span core clinical laboratory testing, anatomic pathology, molecular and genomic diagnostics, infectious disease testing and toxicology.