National Pension Service Decreases Stake in Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX)

National Pension Service reduced its stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX) by 6.4% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 193,890 shares of the medical research company’s stock after selling 13,362 shares during the period. National Pension Service owned approximately 0.17% of Quest Diagnostics worth $27,007,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC grew its stake in Quest Diagnostics by 220.5% during the 1st quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC now owns 13,959 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $1,975,000 after purchasing an additional 9,604 shares during the last quarter. Truist Financial Corp increased its holdings in Quest Diagnostics by 2.2% in the 1st quarter. Truist Financial Corp now owns 23,459 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $3,319,000 after buying an additional 494 shares during the period. WBH Advisory Inc. purchased a new position in Quest Diagnostics during the 1st quarter worth approximately $226,000. Aviva PLC lifted its stake in Quest Diagnostics by 44.3% during the 4th quarter. Aviva PLC now owns 188,756 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $26,598,000 after acquiring an additional 57,972 shares during the period. Finally, Trilogy Capital Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 22.3% in the 1st quarter. Trilogy Capital Inc. now owns 2,247 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $318,000 after acquiring an additional 410 shares during the last quarter. 87.76% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Quest Diagnostics Trading Down 0.8 %

Shares of DGX stock opened at $130.50 on Friday. Quest Diagnostics Incorporated has a 1-year low of $120.40 and a 1-year high of $158.34. The company has a market cap of $14.65 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.00 and a beta of 0.95. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60, a current ratio of 0.92 and a quick ratio of 0.83. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $137.12 and a 200-day simple moving average of $137.76.

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 26th. The medical research company reported $2.30 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.23 by $0.07. Quest Diagnostics had a net margin of 8.37% and a return on equity of 16.32%. The company had revenue of $2.34 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.25 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $2.36 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 4.7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts expect that Quest Diagnostics Incorporated will post 8.7 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Quest Diagnostics Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, October 23rd. Investors of record on Friday, October 6th will be paid a $0.71 dividend. This represents a $2.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.18%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, October 5th. Quest Diagnostics’s dividend payout ratio is presently 41.34%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. StockNews.com assumed coverage on shares of Quest Diagnostics in a research report on Thursday, August 17th. They set a “hold” rating for the company. Morgan Stanley reissued an “equal weight” rating and issued a $145.00 price objective on shares of Quest Diagnostics in a report on Thursday, August 3rd. Finally, Piper Sandler started coverage on Quest Diagnostics in a research note on Thursday, June 29th. They issued a “neutral” rating on the stock. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Quest Diagnostics has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $149.90.

Quest Diagnostics Profile

Quest Diagnostics Incorporated provides diagnostic testing, information, and services in the United States and internationally. The company develops and delivers diagnostic information services, such as routine testing, non-routine and advanced clinical testing, anatomic pathology testing, and other diagnostic information services.