Amalgamated Bank Buys 162 Shares of Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX)

Amalgamated Bank raised its stake in Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX) by 0.6% during the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 29,004 shares of the medical research company’s stock after acquiring an additional 162 shares during the period. Amalgamated Bank’s holdings in Quest Diagnostics were worth $3,970,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of DGX. Rothschild Investment LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics during the 2nd quarter worth about $26,000. Spartan Planning & Wealth Management bought a new position in shares of Quest Diagnostics in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Innealta Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of Quest Diagnostics in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $31,000. Larson Financial Group LLC grew its position in Quest Diagnostics by 77.5% during the 2nd quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 229 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Riverview Trust Co acquired a new stake in Quest Diagnostics during the 1st quarter valued at $33,000. 88.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, SVP Karthik Kuppusamy sold 1,990 shares of Quest Diagnostics stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $153.26, for a total value of $304,987.40. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 11,459 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,756,206.34. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In other news, SVP Mark E. Delaney sold 420 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $143.08, for a total transaction of $60,093.60. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 5,019 shares in the company, valued at approximately $718,118.52. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, SVP Karthik Kuppusamy sold 1,990 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $153.26, for a total value of $304,987.40. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 11,459 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,756,206.34. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.79% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have commented on DGX. Evercore ISI began coverage on Quest Diagnostics in a research note on Wednesday, August 28th. They issued an “in-line” rating and a $165.00 price objective on the stock. Robert W. Baird raised their price objective on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $153.00 to $154.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 24th. Barclays upped their target price on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $144.00 to $154.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 27th. Truist Financial upped their price objective on Quest Diagnostics from $150.00 to $158.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, July 15th. Finally, Citigroup raised Quest Diagnostics from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $145.00 to $165.00 in a research note on Wednesday, July 10th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $154.33.

Quest Diagnostics Stock Performance

DGX stock opened at $152.99 on Monday. Quest Diagnostics Incorporated has a 1-year low of $119.59 and a 1-year high of $159.36. The company has a current ratio of 1.00, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57. The firm has a market cap of $17.00 billion, a PE ratio of 20.59, a P/E/G ratio of 2.80 and a beta of 0.89. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $150.61 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $141.09.

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 23rd. The medical research company reported $2.35 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.31 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $2.40 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.39 billion. Quest Diagnostics had a net margin of 8.99% and a return on equity of 15.35%. The firm’s revenue was up 2.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.30 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts forecast that Quest Diagnostics Incorporated will post 8.89 earnings per share for the current year.

Quest Diagnostics Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, October 21st. Shareholders of record on Friday, October 4th will be paid a $0.75 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 4th. This represents a $3.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.96%. Quest Diagnostics’s payout ratio is currently 40.38%.

About Quest Diagnostics

Quest Diagnostics Incorporated provides diagnostic testing and services in the United States and internationally. The company develops and delivers diagnostic information services, such as routine, non-routine and advanced clinical testing, anatomic pathology testing, and other diagnostic information services.