Dimensional Fund Advisors LP Decreases Stock Position in Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX)

Dimensional Fund Advisors LP trimmed its holdings in shares of Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX) by 1.5% in the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 1,990,673 shares of the medical research company’s stock after selling 30,178 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP owned 1.77% of Quest Diagnostics worth $279,820,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of DGX. Providence Capital Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Quest Diagnostics by 14,887.6% during the 1st quarter. Providence Capital Advisors LLC now owns 4,331,410 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $30,615,000 after buying an additional 4,302,510 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its holdings in Quest Diagnostics by 46,022.7% during the 1st quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 1,914,554 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $270,871,000 after buying an additional 1,910,403 shares during the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its holdings in Quest Diagnostics by 380.0% during the 1st quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 1,458,224 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $206,310,000 after buying an additional 1,154,403 shares during the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. lifted its holdings in Quest Diagnostics by 62.2% during the 1st quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 2,728,816 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $386,073,000 after buying an additional 1,046,746 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Quest Diagnostics during the 4th quarter worth about $157,412,000. 87.76% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have issued reports on the company. TheStreet downgraded Quest Diagnostics from a “b-” rating to a “c” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 24th. StockNews.com upgraded Quest Diagnostics from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Evercore ISI dropped their target price on Quest Diagnostics from $136.00 to $130.00 in a research report on Wednesday, October 11th. Citigroup lowered their price target on Quest Diagnostics from $142.00 to $130.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, October 25th. Finally, Piper Sandler upped their price target on Quest Diagnostics from $130.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, November 6th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $145.80.

Quest Diagnostics Trading Up 1.3 %

Shares of Quest Diagnostics stock opened at $135.47 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $15.23 billion, a PE ratio of 20.34 and a beta of 0.92. The company has a quick ratio of 1.01, a current ratio of 1.12 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61. The business’s fifty day moving average is $126.34 and its two-hundred day moving average is $132.54. Quest Diagnostics Incorporated has a fifty-two week low of $119.59 and a fifty-two week high of $158.34.

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

Quest Diagnostics Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 31st. Investors of record on Wednesday, January 17th will be issued a $0.71 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, January 16th. This represents a $2.84 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.10%. Quest Diagnostics’s dividend payout ratio is currently 42.64%.

Quest Diagnostics Company 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.