Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX) SVP Sells $5,513,005.47 in Stock

Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX) SVP Michael Prevoznik sold 22,677 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, August 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $243.11, for a total transaction of $5,513,005.47. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 37,557 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,130,482.27. This represents a 37.65% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan.

Quest Diagnostics Trading Down 0.7%

Shares of NYSE DGX traded down $1.80 during mid-day trading on Monday, hitting $240.96. The stock had a trading volume of 1,333,548 shares, compared to its average volume of 954,488. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72, a quick ratio of 1.46 and a current ratio of 1.59. Quest Diagnostics Incorporated has a 1 year low of $171.18 and a 1 year high of $247.19. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $223.97 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $207.20. The firm has a market cap of $26.59 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.58, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.24 and a beta of 0.56.

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

Quest Diagnostics Announces Dividend

The business 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 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.4%. Quest Diagnostics’s payout ratio is presently 36.52%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have issued reports on the stock. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Quest Diagnostics from a “buy (b+)” rating to a “buy (a-)” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 12th. Barclays lifted their price objective on Quest Diagnostics from $230.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, July 23rd. Mizuho upped their price objective on Quest Diagnostics from $235.00 to $260.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, July 24th. UBS Group increased their target price on Quest Diagnostics from $220.00 to $232.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, July 24th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $245.00 target price on shares of Quest Diagnostics in a research report on Thursday, July 23rd. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have assigned a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $235.31.

Institutional Trading of Quest Diagnostics

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Key Financial Inc lifted its holdings in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 1,728.6% in the 1st quarter. Key Financial Inc now owns 128 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 121 shares during the last quarter. Quattro Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Quest Diagnostics during the fourth quarter worth approximately $25,000. DV Equities LLC purchased a new stake in Quest Diagnostics during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Sittner & Nelson LLC purchased a new stake in Quest Diagnostics during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Finally, Ancora Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $29,000. 88.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.