M.D. Sass LLC Buys New Shares in Quest Diagnostics Incorporated $DGX

M.D. Sass LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX) in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 360,453 shares of the medical research company’s stock, valued at approximately $76,398,000. Quest Diagnostics comprises approximately 5.0% of M.D. Sass LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 7th biggest holding. M.D. Sass LLC owned about 0.33% of Quest Diagnostics at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Alpine Woods Capital Investors LLC purchased a new stake in Quest Diagnostics during the second quarter worth approximately $1,508,000. Meeder Advisory Services Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Quest Diagnostics in the 2nd quarter valued at $654,000. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI purchased a new position in shares of Quest Diagnostics in the 2nd quarter valued at $245,000. Cornerstone Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Quest Diagnostics during the 2nd quarter valued at $10,006,000. Finally, Nuance Investments LLC acquired a new position in shares of Quest Diagnostics during the 2nd quarter valued at $5,822,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 88.06% of the company’s stock.

Quest Diagnostics Stock Performance

Quest Diagnostics stock opened at $236.71 on Wednesday. Quest Diagnostics Incorporated has a 52 week low of $171.18 and a 52 week high of $240.13. The company has a current ratio of 1.59, a quick ratio of 1.46 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72. The stock has a market cap of $26.13 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.13, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.16 and a beta of 0.56. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $217.00 and a 200-day moving average of $204.06.

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 23rd. The medical research company reported $3.12 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.82 by $0.30. Quest Diagnostics had a net margin of 9.18% and a return on equity of 16.01%. The firm had revenue of $3.04 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.97 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $2.62 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 10.2% on a year-over-year basis. Quest Diagnostics has set its FY 2026 guidance at 11.050-11.250 EPS. On average, analysts expect that Quest Diagnostics Incorporated will post 11.15 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Quest Diagnostics Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 21st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, October 6th will be paid a dividend of $0.86 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, October 6th. This represents a $3.44 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.5%. Quest Diagnostics’s dividend payout ratio is presently 36.52%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Quest Diagnostics

In other Quest Diagnostics news, CEO J. E. Davis sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $194.14, for a total transaction of $1,941,400.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 132,423 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $25,708,601.22. This trade represents a 7.02% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, SVP Mark E. Delaney sold 1,600 shares of Quest Diagnostics stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $235.18, for a total value of $376,288.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president owned 10,335 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,430,585.30. The trade was a 13.41% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold 19,747 shares of company stock worth $3,947,088 over the last quarter. 0.88% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts recently issued reports on the company. Truist Financial increased their price target on Quest Diagnostics from $225.00 to $250.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, July 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on Quest Diagnostics from $220.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 28th. UBS Group upped their target price on Quest Diagnostics from $220.00 to $232.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, July 24th. Robert W. Baird raised their target price on Quest Diagnostics from $236.00 to $255.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, July 24th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reissued a “buy” rating and set a $245.00 price target on shares of Quest Diagnostics in a research report on Thursday, July 23rd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have issued a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $235.31.

Quest Diagnostics Company Profile

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.