Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX) Shares Sold by Farrow Financial Inc.

Farrow Financial Inc. lowered its stake in Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX) by 0.4% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 14,722 shares of the medical research company’s stock after selling 64 shares during the quarter. Quest Diagnostics comprises 1.4% of Farrow Financial Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 28th largest position. Farrow Financial Inc.’s holdings in Quest Diagnostics were worth $2,223,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. State Street Corp grew its stake in Quest Diagnostics by 1.4% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 5,263,231 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $817,117,000 after purchasing an additional 70,578 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 1.5% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,616,653 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $404,838,000 after purchasing an additional 39,217 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its holdings in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 14.8% in the 4th quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 881,764 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $133,023,000 after purchasing an additional 113,956 shares during the last quarter. Amundi lifted its holdings in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 10.8% in the 4th quarter. Amundi now owns 795,485 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $122,528,000 after purchasing an additional 77,559 shares during the last quarter. Finally, BNP Paribas Financial Markets lifted its holdings in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 25.4% in the 3rd quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 747,298 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $116,018,000 after purchasing an additional 151,365 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 88.06% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

DGX has been the topic of several recent research reports. Citigroup downgraded Quest Diagnostics from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $185.00 price target on the stock. in a report on Tuesday, March 4th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on Quest Diagnostics from $173.00 to $180.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Bank of America raised their target price on Quest Diagnostics from $179.00 to $182.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, December 13th. Robert W. Baird set a $189.00 target price on Quest Diagnostics in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Truist Financial raised their target price on Quest Diagnostics from $172.00 to $182.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Quest Diagnostics currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $178.23.

Insider Transactions at Quest Diagnostics

In other news, Director Vicky B. Gregg sold 1,250 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $164.57, for a total value of $205,712.50. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 16,867 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,775,802.19. This trade represents a 6.90 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, SVP Mark E. Delaney sold 403 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $164.30, for a total value of $66,212.90. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 4,624 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $759,723.20. This trade represents a 8.02 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 9,514 shares of company stock valued at $1,634,445 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.79% of the company’s stock.

Quest Diagnostics Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE DGX opened at $175.49 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.02, a current ratio of 1.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.82. The stock has a market capitalization of $19.48 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.82, a PEG ratio of 2.16 and a beta of 0.92. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $161.74 and its 200 day simple moving average is $157.60. Quest Diagnostics Incorporated has a 52-week low of $125.09 and a 52-week high of $178.09.

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The medical research company reported $2.23 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.19 by $0.04. Quest Diagnostics had a return on equity of 15.07% and a net margin of 8.80%. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Quest Diagnostics Incorporated will post 9.7 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Quest Diagnostics Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 21st. Stockholders of record on Monday, April 7th will be given a $0.80 dividend. This represents a $3.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.82%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, April 7th. This is a boost from Quest Diagnostics’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.75. Quest Diagnostics’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 41.61%.

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.