Trillium Asset Management LLC Sells 3,400 Shares of Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX)

Trillium Asset Management LLC lowered its position in shares of Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX) by 8.8% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 35,086 shares of the medical research company’s stock after selling 3,400 shares during the quarter. Trillium Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Quest Diagnostics were worth $5,293,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Net Worth Advisory Group raised its stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 1.0% in the fourth quarter. Net Worth Advisory Group now owns 6,495 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $980,000 after acquiring an additional 62 shares during the last quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group raised its position in Quest Diagnostics by 5.5% in the 4th quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group now owns 1,315 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $198,000 after purchasing an additional 68 shares during the last quarter. Avestar Capital LLC boosted its stake in Quest Diagnostics by 1.1% in the third quarter. Avestar Capital LLC now owns 6,288 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $976,000 after purchasing an additional 71 shares in the last quarter. Mather Group LLC. grew its holdings in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 10.4% during the fourth quarter. Mather Group LLC. now owns 764 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $115,000 after purchasing an additional 72 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Private Trust Co. NA increased its stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 7.7% in the fourth quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 1,053 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $159,000 after buying an additional 75 shares in the last quarter. 88.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Quest Diagnostics Price Performance

Quest Diagnostics stock opened at $167.94 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 1.10, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.82. The firm has a market capitalization of $18.64 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.84, a PEG ratio of 2.16 and a beta of 0.92. The business has a 50-day moving average of $164.63 and a 200-day moving average of $158.48. Quest Diagnostics Incorporated has a 1 year low of $125.42 and a 1 year high of $178.87.

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

Quest Diagnostics Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 21st. Investors of record on Monday, April 7th will be paid a dividend of $0.80 per share. This represents a $3.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.91%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, April 7th. This is an increase from Quest Diagnostics’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.75. Quest Diagnostics’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 41.61%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Vicky B. Gregg sold 1,250 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $164.57, for a total transaction of $205,712.50. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 16,867 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,775,802.19. This represents a 6.90 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, SVP Mark E. Delaney sold 403 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $164.30, for a total transaction of $66,212.90. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 4,624 shares in the company, valued at $759,723.20. This trade represents a 8.02 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 14,157 shares of company stock valued at $2,423,755. 0.79% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts recently issued reports on DGX shares. Bank of America upped their price target on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $179.00 to $182.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, December 13th. Piper Sandler reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $180.00 target price (up from $165.00) on shares of Quest Diagnostics in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. UBS Group raised their price target on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $166.00 to $170.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Leerink Partners upgraded shares of Quest Diagnostics from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and boosted their price objective for the stock from $169.00 to $174.00 in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Finally, StockNews.com lowered Quest Diagnostics from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $178.23.

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.