Nuance Investments LLC Buys 25,349 Shares of Quest Diagnostics Incorporated $DGX

Nuance Investments LLC boosted its stake in Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX) by 83.9% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 55,556 shares of the medical research company’s stock after acquiring an additional 25,349 shares during the period. Quest Diagnostics accounts for about 1.1% of Nuance Investments LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 24th biggest position. Nuance Investments LLC’s holdings in Quest Diagnostics were worth $9,641,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in DGX. JFS Wealth Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 114.3% in the fourth quarter. JFS Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 150 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 80 shares during the period. Harbor Investment Advisory LLC raised its position in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 113.7% in the fourth quarter. Harbor Investment Advisory LLC now owns 156 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 83 shares during the period. Sittner & Nelson LLC bought a new stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. McIlrath & Eck LLC bought a new stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Finally, Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd bought a new stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics in the third quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Institutional investors own 88.06% of the company’s stock.

Quest Diagnostics Price Performance

DGX stock opened at $200.74 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67, a current ratio of 1.18 and a quick ratio of 1.08. Quest Diagnostics Incorporated has a one year low of $164.65 and a one year high of $213.50. The stock has a market cap of $22.22 billion, a PE ratio of 22.18, a P/E/G ratio of 2.34 and a beta of 0.59. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $194.43 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $191.33.

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 21st. The medical research company reported $2.50 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.37 by $0.13. Quest Diagnostics had a net margin of 9.07% and a return on equity of 15.60%. The business had revenue of $2.90 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.83 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.94 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 9.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Quest Diagnostics has set its FY 2026 guidance at 10.630-10.830 EPS. On average, analysts predict that Quest Diagnostics Incorporated will post 10.72 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Quest Diagnostics declared that its board has approved a share buyback program on Tuesday, February 10th that authorizes the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the medical research company to buy up to 4.7% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are generally an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Quest Diagnostics Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 22nd. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, July 8th will be paid a $0.86 dividend. This represents a $3.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, July 8th. Quest Diagnostics’s payout ratio is currently 38.01%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Quest Diagnostics news, CEO J. E. Davis sold 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $194.14, for a total value of $1,941,400.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 132,423 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $25,708,601.22. The trade was a 7.02% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. 0.88% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Quest Diagnostics from a “buy (b+)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 19th. Robert W. Baird boosted their price target on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $224.00 to $229.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 22nd. UBS Group boosted their price target on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $210.00 to $220.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 22nd. Evercore set a $225.00 price target on shares of Quest Diagnostics in a research report on Tuesday, April 21st. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $225.00 price target on shares of Quest Diagnostics in a research report on Tuesday, April 21st. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $216.58.

Quest Diagnostics 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.