Wedge Capital Management L L P NC Lowers Stock Position in Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX)

Wedge Capital Management L L P NC trimmed its position in Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX) by 13.5% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 239,963 shares of the medical research company’s stock after selling 37,598 shares during the quarter. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC owned 0.22% of Quest Diagnostics worth $37,254,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Rothschild Investment LLC acquired a new position in Quest Diagnostics in the 2nd quarter worth $26,000. Spartan Planning & Wealth Management bought a new stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics in the fourth quarter worth $31,000. Innealta Capital LLC acquired a new stake in Quest Diagnostics in the second quarter valued at $31,000. Larson Financial Group LLC increased its position in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 77.5% in the 2nd quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 229 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Riverview Trust Co acquired a new stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics in the 1st quarter valued at about $33,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 88.06% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Quest Diagnostics

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

DGX has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Piper Sandler boosted their price objective on Quest Diagnostics from $145.00 to $150.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, July 29th. Barclays boosted their price target on Quest Diagnostics from $144.00 to $154.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 27th. StockNews.com cut Quest Diagnostics from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, October 7th. Citigroup upgraded Quest Diagnostics from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $145.00 to $165.00 in a research report on Wednesday, July 10th. Finally, Evercore ISI assumed coverage on shares of Quest Diagnostics in a report on Wednesday, August 28th. They issued an “in-line” rating and a $165.00 price objective on the stock. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $154.92.

Quest Diagnostics Stock Up 0.5 %

Shares of DGX stock traded up $0.74 on Monday, hitting $149.41. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 182,559 shares, compared to its average volume of 916,979. 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 stock has a market capitalization of $16.60 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.01, a P/E/G ratio of 2.45 and a beta of 0.89. Quest Diagnostics Incorporated has a fifty-two week low of $120.87 and a fifty-two week high of $159.36. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $152.51 and its 200-day moving average price is $143.53.

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 23rd. The medical research company reported $2.35 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.31 by $0.04. Quest Diagnostics had a return on equity of 15.35% and a net margin of 8.99%. The business had revenue of $2.40 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.39 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $2.30 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.5% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts anticipate that Quest Diagnostics Incorporated will post 8.89 EPS for the current year.

Quest Diagnostics Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, October 21st. Stockholders of record on Friday, October 4th will be given a dividend of $0.75 per share. This represents a $3.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.01%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 4th. Quest Diagnostics’s dividend payout ratio is currently 40.38%.

About Quest Diagnostics

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.