Marshall Wace LLP Lowers Stake in Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX)

Marshall Wace LLP decreased its holdings in Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX) by 67.8% in the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 189,025 shares of the medical research company’s stock after selling 397,174 shares during the quarter. Marshall Wace LLP owned 0.17% of Quest Diagnostics worth $25,874,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of DGX. Integral Health Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Quest Diagnostics during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $13,688,000. Public Sector Pension Investment Board raised its position in Quest Diagnostics by 68.8% during the second quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 4,315 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $591,000 after acquiring an additional 1,759 shares during the period. ProShare Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Quest Diagnostics by 115.9% during the second quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 32,674 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $4,472,000 after purchasing an additional 17,541 shares in the last quarter. Hancock Whitney Corp grew its position in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 18.2% in the second quarter. Hancock Whitney Corp now owns 8,665 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $1,186,000 after purchasing an additional 1,337 shares during the period. Finally, Legacy Financial Advisors Inc. increased its stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 1.6% during the second quarter. Legacy Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 4,697 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $643,000 after purchasing an additional 72 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 88.06% of the company’s stock.

Quest Diagnostics Price Performance

Quest Diagnostics stock opened at $154.42 on Friday. 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 stock has a market cap of $17.19 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.78, a PEG ratio of 2.80 and a beta of 0.89. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $150.96 and a 200 day moving average price of $141.54. Quest Diagnostics Incorporated has a 12-month low of $119.59 and a 12-month high of $159.36.

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

Quest Diagnostics Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, October 21st. Investors of record on Friday, October 4th will be given a dividend of $0.75 per share. This represents a $3.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.94%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 4th. Quest Diagnostics’s payout ratio is 40.38%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

DGX has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Evercore ISI initiated coverage on Quest Diagnostics in a report on Wednesday, August 28th. They issued an “in-line” rating and a $165.00 price objective on the stock. Robert W. Baird lifted their price target on Quest Diagnostics from $153.00 to $154.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 24th. Truist Financial increased their price objective on Quest Diagnostics from $150.00 to $158.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, July 15th. Piper Sandler lifted their target price on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $145.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, July 29th. Finally, Barclays increased their target price on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $144.00 to $154.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 27th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $154.33.

Insider Activity at Quest Diagnostics

In other Quest Diagnostics news, SVP Mark E. Delaney sold 420 shares of the 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 completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 5,019 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $718,118.52. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. In related news, SVP Mark E. Delaney sold 420 shares of the 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 transaction, the senior vice president now owns 5,019 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $718,118.52. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, SVP Karthik Kuppusamy sold 1,990 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 11,459 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,756,206.34. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.79% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.