Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX) Shares Purchased by Larson Financial Group LLC

Larson Financial Group LLC raised its position in Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX) by 77.5% during the 2nd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 229 shares of the medical research company’s stock after acquiring an additional 100 shares during the quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC’s holdings in Quest Diagnostics were worth $31,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Rothschild Investment LLC bought a new stake in Quest Diagnostics during the 2nd quarter valued at $26,000. Spartan Planning & Wealth Management bought a new stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics during the fourth quarter valued at about $31,000. Innealta Capital LLC bought a new stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics during the second quarter valued at about $31,000. Riverview Trust Co acquired a new stake in Quest Diagnostics in the first quarter worth about $33,000. Finally, TruNorth Capital Management LLC bought a new position in Quest Diagnostics in the 2nd quarter valued at about $33,000. Institutional investors own 88.06% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, SVP Mark E. Delaney sold 420 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $143.08, for a total transaction of $60,093.60. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 5,019 shares in the company, valued at $718,118.52. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other news, SVP Karthik Kuppusamy sold 1,990 shares of the company’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 transaction, the senior vice president now directly 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 Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, SVP Mark E. Delaney sold 420 shares of Quest Diagnostics stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $143.08, for a total value of $60,093.60. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 5,019 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $718,118.52. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.79% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Quest Diagnostics Stock Up 0.9 %

DGX stock opened at $154.29 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57, a current ratio of 1.00 and a quick ratio of 0.91. The firm has a market capitalization of $17.18 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.77, a P/E/G ratio of 2.79 and a beta of 0.89. Quest Diagnostics Incorporated has a 52-week low of $119.59 and a 52-week high of $159.36. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $148.07 and its 200-day simple moving average is $139.26.

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

Quest Diagnostics Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, October 21st. Shareholders of record on Friday, October 4th will be paid a dividend of $0.75 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 4th. This represents a $3.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.94%. Quest Diagnostics’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 40.38%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $152.00 to $155.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 30th. Truist Financial upped their target price on Quest Diagnostics from $150.00 to $158.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, July 15th. StockNews.com upgraded Quest Diagnostics from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 23rd. Piper Sandler upped their price objective on Quest Diagnostics from $145.00 to $150.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, July 29th. Finally, Evercore ISI began coverage on Quest Diagnostics in a research note on Wednesday, August 28th. They set an “in-line” rating and a $165.00 target price for the company. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $154.33.

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.