Sit Investment Associates Inc. Acquires 4,214 Shares of Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX)

Sit Investment Associates Inc. increased its position in shares of Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX) by 6.4% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 69,670 shares of the medical research company’s stock after buying an additional 4,214 shares during the quarter. Sit Investment Associates Inc.’s holdings in Quest Diagnostics were worth $9,793,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Farmers & Merchants Investments Inc. grew its position in Quest Diagnostics by 1.8% during the second quarter. Farmers & Merchants Investments Inc. now owns 4,217 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $593,000 after buying an additional 75 shares in the last quarter. Apollon Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in Quest Diagnostics by 1.6% during the fourth quarter. Apollon Wealth Management LLC now owns 4,814 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $753,000 after purchasing an additional 78 shares in the last quarter. Park Place Capital Corp boosted its holdings in Quest Diagnostics by 73.4% during the second quarter. Park Place Capital Corp now owns 189 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 80 shares in the last quarter. Dark Forest Capital Management LP boosted its holdings in Quest Diagnostics by 7.1% during the first quarter. Dark Forest Capital Management LP now owns 1,226 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $173,000 after purchasing an additional 81 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Moody National Bank Trust Division boosted its holdings in Quest Diagnostics by 2.2% during the second quarter. Moody National Bank Trust Division now owns 3,784 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $532,000 after purchasing an additional 82 shares in the last quarter. 87.76% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on DGX shares. Citigroup decreased their price objective on Quest Diagnostics from $142.00 to $130.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, October 25th. StockNews.com downgraded Quest Diagnostics from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, November 2nd. Piper Sandler lifted their price objective on Quest Diagnostics from $130.00 to $140.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, November 6th. Evercore ISI reduced their target price on Quest Diagnostics from $136.00 to $130.00 in a report on Wednesday, October 11th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reissued an “equal weight” rating and issued a $145.00 target price on shares of Quest Diagnostics in a report on Thursday, August 3rd. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Quest Diagnostics has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $145.80.

Quest Diagnostics Stock Performance

DGX stock opened at $133.78 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61, a current ratio of 1.12 and a quick ratio of 1.01. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $126.34 and a 200 day moving average price of $132.54. Quest Diagnostics Incorporated has a fifty-two week low of $119.59 and a fifty-two week high of $158.34. The stock has a market capitalization of $15.04 billion, a PE ratio of 20.09 and a beta of 0.92.

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 24th. The medical research company reported $2.22 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.19 by $0.03. Quest Diagnostics had a net margin of 8.21% and a return on equity of 15.80%. The firm had revenue of $2.30 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.27 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.36 EPS. Quest Diagnostics’s revenue was down 7.7% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts forecast that Quest Diagnostics Incorporated will post 8.71 EPS for the current year.

Quest Diagnostics Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 31st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, January 17th will be given a dividend of $0.71 per share. This represents a $2.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.12%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, January 16th. Quest Diagnostics’s payout ratio is 42.64%.

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.