Wellington Wealth Strategies LLC. Takes Position in Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX)

Wellington Wealth Strategies LLC. acquired a new position in shares of Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX) in the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund acquired 2,149 shares of the medical research company’s stock, valued at approximately $294,000. Quest Diagnostics accounts for about 1.3% of Wellington Wealth Strategies LLC.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 22nd largest holding.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in DGX. Rothschild Investment LLC acquired a new position in shares of Quest Diagnostics during the 2nd quarter worth about $26,000. Spartan Planning & Wealth Management acquired a new position in Quest Diagnostics during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Larson Financial Group LLC increased its stake in Quest Diagnostics by 77.5% in the second 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 in the last quarter. Innealta Capital LLC acquired a new stake in Quest Diagnostics in the second quarter worth $31,000. Finally, TruNorth Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Quest Diagnostics during the second quarter worth $33,000. Institutional investors own 88.06% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other Quest Diagnostics 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 transaction of $304,987.40. Following the sale, 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 legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other news, SVP Karthik Kuppusamy sold 1,990 shares of the company’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 sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 11,459 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,756,206.34. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, SVP Mark E. Delaney sold 420 shares of Quest Diagnostics stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $143.08, for a total value of $60,093.60. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now 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 currently owned by insiders.

Quest Diagnostics Stock Up 0.2 %

Quest Diagnostics stock opened at $154.80 on Monday. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $151.29 and a 200 day simple moving average of $141.89. The company has a current ratio of 1.00, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57. Quest Diagnostics Incorporated has a 1-year low of $119.59 and a 1-year high of $159.36. The company has a market cap of $17.20 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.83, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.80 and a beta of 0.89.

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 business had revenue of $2.40 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.39 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $2.30 earnings per share. Quest Diagnostics’s quarterly revenue was up 2.5% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts anticipate that Quest Diagnostics Incorporated will post 8.89 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Quest Diagnostics Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, October 21st. Stockholders of record on Friday, October 4th will be paid 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 dividend payout ratio is currently 40.38%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts recently commented on DGX shares. Evercore ISI started coverage on Quest Diagnostics in a research note on Wednesday, August 28th. They set an “in-line” rating and a $165.00 price objective on the stock. Truist Financial lifted their price objective on Quest Diagnostics from $150.00 to $158.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, July 15th. Robert W. Baird boosted their price objective on Quest Diagnostics from $153.00 to $154.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 24th. Barclays raised their target price on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $144.00 to $154.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 27th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded shares of Quest Diagnostics from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 23rd. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Quest Diagnostics presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $154.33.

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.