New York Life Investment Management LLC Raises Stock Position in Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX)

New York Life Investment Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX) by 1.3% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 16,763 shares of the medical research company’s stock after buying an additional 219 shares during the quarter. New York Life Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Quest Diagnostics were worth $2,529,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC lifted its position in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 14.5% in the third quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 10,657 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $1,655,000 after buying an additional 1,346 shares in the last quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC lifted its position in Quest Diagnostics by 20.7% during the third quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 16,348 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $2,538,000 after purchasing an additional 2,805 shares during the last quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. grew its stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 114.9% in the 3rd quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 10,169 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $1,579,000 after buying an additional 5,436 shares in the last quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. increased its holdings in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 10.7% in the 3rd quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. now owns 124,484 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $19,326,000 after buying an additional 12,083 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Forum Financial Management LP lifted its holdings in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 5.4% in the 3rd quarter. Forum Financial Management LP now owns 1,940 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $301,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 88.06% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Quest Diagnostics

In other news, SVP Mark E. Delaney sold 403 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $164.30, for a total value of $66,212.90. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 4,624 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $759,723.20. The trade was a 8.02 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Catherine T. Doherty sold 535 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $169.71, for a total value of $90,794.85. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 71,356 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $12,109,826.76. This trade represents a 0.74 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 4,144 shares of company stock valued at $699,367. Company insiders own 0.79% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have weighed in on DGX. Leerink Partnrs raised Quest Diagnostics from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Barclays boosted their target price on Quest Diagnostics from $168.00 to $175.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Jefferies Financial Group restated a “buy” rating and issued a $185.00 price target (up from $175.00) on shares of Quest Diagnostics in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. Morgan Stanley raised shares of Quest Diagnostics from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their target price for the company from $145.00 to $172.00 in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. Finally, StockNews.com cut shares of Quest Diagnostics from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $178.23.

Quest Diagnostics Stock Up 0.8 %

Shares of NYSE DGX opened at $172.86 on Monday. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $159.63 and a 200 day moving average price of $156.82. The firm has a market capitalization of $19.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.48, a PEG ratio of 2.16 and a beta of 0.91. Quest Diagnostics Incorporated has a 52-week low of $123.66 and a 52-week high of $176.44. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.82, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a current ratio of 1.10.

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The medical research company reported $2.23 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.19 by $0.04. Quest Diagnostics had a return on equity of 15.07% and a net margin of 8.80%. Sell-side analysts expect that Quest Diagnostics Incorporated will post 9.7 earnings per share for the current year.

Quest Diagnostics Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 21st. Stockholders of record on Monday, April 7th will be issued a $0.80 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, April 7th. This represents a $3.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.85%. This is a positive change from Quest Diagnostics’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.75. Quest Diagnostics’s payout ratio is currently 41.61%.

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.