Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX) Stock Rating Lowered by StockNews.com

by · The Cerbat Gem

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX – Get Free Report) was downgraded by research analysts at StockNews.com from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a note issued to investors on Monday.

A number of other brokerages have also recently weighed in on DGX. Evercore ISI began coverage on shares of Quest Diagnostics in a research note on Wednesday, August 28th. They set an “in-line” rating and a $165.00 price target for the company. Citigroup upgraded Quest Diagnostics from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price target for the company from $145.00 to $165.00 in a research report on Wednesday, July 10th. Barclays increased their price objective on Quest Diagnostics from $144.00 to $154.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 27th. Piper Sandler boosted their target price on Quest Diagnostics from $145.00 to $150.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, July 29th. Finally, Truist Financial increased their price target on Quest Diagnostics from $158.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Monday. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Quest Diagnostics has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $154.92.

Check Out Our Latest Report on DGX

Quest Diagnostics Trading Up 1.3 %

NYSE DGX opened at $148.78 on Monday. Quest Diagnostics has a 12 month low of $120.10 and a 12 month high of $159.36. The company has a market capitalization of $16.53 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.02, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.80 and a beta of 0.89. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57, a current ratio of 1.00 and a quick ratio of 0.91. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $152.40 and its 200 day moving average price is $143.13.

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX – Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, July 23rd. The medical research company reported $2.35 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.31 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $2.40 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.39 billion. Quest Diagnostics had a return on equity of 15.35% and a net margin of 8.99%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 2.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $2.30 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Quest Diagnostics will post 8.89 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, SVP Mark E. Delaney sold 420 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $143.08, for a total value of $60,093.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 5,019 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $718,118.52. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In related news, SVP Mark E. Delaney sold 420 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $143.08, for a total value of $60,093.60. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 5,019 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $718,118.52. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, SVP Karthik Kuppusamy sold 1,990 shares of Quest Diagnostics stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $153.26, for a total transaction of $304,987.40. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 11,459 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,756,206.34. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.79% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Quest Diagnostics

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 2.5% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 13,921,955 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $1,853,151,000 after acquiring an additional 345,754 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its holdings in Quest Diagnostics by 0.7% in the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 2,632,326 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $362,945,000 after purchasing an additional 18,533 shares in the last quarter. Davis Selected Advisers boosted its stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 0.4% during the 2nd quarter. Davis Selected Advisers now owns 2,390,828 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $327,257,000 after purchasing an additional 9,665 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its holdings in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 6.5% during the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,109,515 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $288,758,000 after buying an additional 129,395 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Nuance Investments LLC raised its position in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 13.1% in the first quarter. Nuance Investments LLC now owns 681,636 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $90,733,000 after buying an additional 79,152 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 88.06% of the company’s stock.

About Quest Diagnostics

(Get Free Report)

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.

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