Czech National Bank Purchases 1,507 Shares of Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX)

Czech National Bank lifted its position in shares of Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX) by 7.1% during the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 22,676 shares of the medical research company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,507 shares during the period. Czech National Bank’s holdings in Quest Diagnostics were worth $3,520,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms recently issued reports on DGX. Truist Financial raised their price objective on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $158.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, October 7th. Evercore ISI began coverage on Quest Diagnostics in a report on Wednesday, August 28th. They set an “in-line” rating and a $165.00 price objective for the company. Barclays boosted their target price on Quest Diagnostics from $144.00 to $154.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 27th. Citigroup upgraded Quest Diagnostics from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price target for the stock from $145.00 to $165.00 in a research note on Wednesday, July 10th. Finally, Robert W. Baird upped their price objective on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $153.00 to $154.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 24th. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $154.92.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Quest Diagnostics news, SVP Karthik Kuppusamy sold 1,990 shares of Quest Diagnostics stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $153.26, for a total transaction of $304,987.40. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 11,459 shares in the company, valued at $1,756,206.34. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale 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 stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 24th. The stock was 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. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, SVP Karthik Kuppusamy sold 1,990 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $153.26, for a total value of $304,987.40. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 11,459 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,756,206.34. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.79% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Quest Diagnostics Stock Performance

Quest Diagnostics stock opened at $148.67 on Friday. Quest Diagnostics Incorporated has a 1-year low of $120.10 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 capitalization of $16.55 billion, a PE ratio of 20.06, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.45 and a beta of 0.89. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $152.53 and its 200 day simple moving average is $143.20.

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

Quest Diagnostics Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, October 21st. Stockholders of record on Friday, October 4th will be issued a dividend of $0.75 per share. This represents a $3.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.02%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 4th. Quest Diagnostics’s payout ratio is 40.49%.

Quest Diagnostics Profile

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.