Quest Diagnostics Incorporated $DGX Stock Position Lowered by Chevy Chase Trust Holdings LLC

Chevy Chase Trust Holdings LLC decreased its position in Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX) by 6.1% in the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 87,092 shares of the medical research company’s stock after selling 5,651 shares during the period. Chevy Chase Trust Holdings LLC’s holdings in Quest Diagnostics were worth $16,598,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 2.1% in the second quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 14,233,576 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $2,556,777,000 after buying an additional 296,860 shares during the period. Boston Partners raised its position in Quest Diagnostics by 32.8% during the third quarter. Boston Partners now owns 4,036,881 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $767,978,000 after buying an additional 997,033 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its stake in Quest Diagnostics by 0.3% in the 3rd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,907,510 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $363,509,000 after acquiring an additional 6,155 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. boosted its position in Quest Diagnostics by 1.8% during the 3rd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 1,688,769 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $321,846,000 after acquiring an additional 30,418 shares during the period. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE boosted its position in Quest Diagnostics by 2.2% during the 3rd quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 1,635,075 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $311,613,000 after acquiring an additional 35,473 shares during the period. 88.06% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Quest Diagnostics

In related news, SVP Karthik Kuppusamy sold 2,628 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $204.86, for a total value of $538,372.08. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 13,441 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,753,523.26. This represents a 16.35% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, SVP Michael E. Prevoznik sold 3,878 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $206.21, for a total transaction of $799,682.38. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 37,557 shares in the company, valued at $7,744,628.97. The trade was a 9.36% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 24,083 shares of company stock worth $4,945,262. Company insiders own 8.16% of the company’s stock.

Quest Diagnostics Stock Down 0.3%

Shares of Quest Diagnostics stock opened at $199.06 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $21.87 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.75, a P/E/G ratio of 2.58 and a beta of 0.65. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $194.80 and a 200-day simple moving average of $186.62. Quest Diagnostics Incorporated has a 52-week low of $157.20 and a 52-week high of $213.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 1.04 and a quick ratio of 0.96.

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

Quest Diagnostics declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a share buyback plan on Tuesday, February 10th that authorizes the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the medical research company to purchase up to 4.7% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are generally a sign that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Quest Diagnostics Increases Dividend

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on DGX. Jefferies Financial Group upped their target price on Quest Diagnostics from $215.00 to $220.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 10th. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Quest Diagnostics from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Sunday. Barclays boosted their price objective on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $210.00 to $225.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 11th. Mizuho increased their target price on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $210.00 to $235.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 12th. Finally, Truist Financial lifted their target price on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $205.00 to $220.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating 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. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $210.29.

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.