Quadrature Capital Ltd Sells 13,802 Shares of Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX)

Quadrature Capital Ltd reduced its position in shares of Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX) by 40.3% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 20,404 shares of the medical research company’s stock after selling 13,802 shares during the quarter. Quadrature Capital Ltd’s holdings in Quest Diagnostics were worth $2,717,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Mendota Financial Group LLC grew its stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 6.2% during the 4th quarter. Mendota Financial Group LLC now owns 1,296 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $179,000 after purchasing an additional 76 shares during the period. Arkadios Wealth Advisors grew its stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 1.6% during the 1st quarter. Arkadios Wealth Advisors now owns 4,933 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $657,000 after acquiring an additional 77 shares during the period. New England Capital Financial Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 24.7% during the 1st quarter. New England Capital Financial Advisors LLC now owns 389 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $52,000 after acquiring an additional 77 shares during the period. Keudell Morrison Wealth Management grew its stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 3.8% during the 1st quarter. Keudell Morrison Wealth Management now owns 2,312 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $308,000 after acquiring an additional 85 shares during the period. Finally, Arjuna Capital grew its stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 5.2% during the 1st quarter. Arjuna Capital now owns 1,770 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $236,000 after acquiring an additional 88 shares during the period. 88.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Quest Diagnostics Trading Up 0.9 %

NYSE:DGX traded up $1.34 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $145.59. 1,282,555 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 946,174. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $141.12 and its 200-day moving average is $134.43. Quest Diagnostics Incorporated has a 12-month low of $119.59 and a 12-month high of $150.59. The firm has a market capitalization of $16.21 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.59, a P/E/G ratio of 2.65 and a beta of 0.89. The company has a current ratio of 1.00, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57.

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX) last released its quarterly 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 company had revenue of $2.40 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.39 billion. Quest Diagnostics had a return on equity of 15.35% and a net margin of 8.99%. Quest Diagnostics’s quarterly revenue was up 2.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $2.30 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Quest Diagnostics Incorporated will post 8.89 EPS for the current year.

Quest Diagnostics Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, July 22nd. Shareholders of record on Monday, July 8th were given a $0.75 dividend. This represents a $3.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.06%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, July 8th. Quest Diagnostics’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 40.38%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on DGX. UBS Group boosted their price objective on Quest Diagnostics from $139.00 to $146.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on Quest Diagnostics from $152.00 to $155.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, May 30th. Citigroup raised Quest Diagnostics from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $145.00 to $165.00 in a report on Wednesday, July 10th. Robert W. Baird boosted their price target on Quest Diagnostics from $153.00 to $154.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday. Finally, StockNews.com raised Quest Diagnostics from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 23rd. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Quest Diagnostics has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $149.38.

Insider Buying and Selling at Quest Diagnostics

In other Quest Diagnostics news, SVP Mark E. Delaney sold 420 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the senior vice president now owns 5,019 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $718,118.52. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other news, SVP Mark E. Delaney sold 420 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $143.08, for a total transaction of $60,093.60. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 5,019 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $718,118.52. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, SVP Karthik Kuppusamy sold 1,760 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, April 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $140.00, for a total value of $246,400.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 13,435 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,880,900. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.79% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Quest Diagnostics Profile

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.