CIBC Asset Management Inc Grows Position in Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX)

CIBC Asset Management Inc raised its holdings in Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX) by 1.6% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 38,389 shares of the medical research company’s stock after acquiring an additional 619 shares during the period. CIBC Asset Management Inc’s holdings in Quest Diagnostics were worth $5,952,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Rothschild Investment LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics in the 2nd quarter valued at about $26,000. Larson Financial Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 77.5% during the 2nd quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 229 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. Innealta Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of Quest Diagnostics during the 2nd quarter valued at about $31,000. TruNorth Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Quest Diagnostics during the 2nd quarter valued at about $33,000. Finally, EdgeRock Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of Quest Diagnostics during the 2nd quarter valued at about $35,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 88.06% of the company’s stock.

Quest Diagnostics Price Performance

Shares of DGX stock opened at $160.44 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $17.91 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.56, a P/E/G ratio of 2.77 and a beta of 0.89. Quest Diagnostics Incorporated has a fifty-two week low of $123.04 and a fifty-two week high of $162.59. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $153.99 and its 200-day moving average price is $147.47. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.83, a quick ratio of 1.17 and a current ratio of 1.25.

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 22nd. The medical research company reported $2.30 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.26 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $2.49 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.43 billion. Quest Diagnostics had a return on equity of 15.25% and a net margin of 8.82%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 8.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.22 EPS. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Quest Diagnostics Incorporated will post 8.9 earnings per share for the current year.

Quest Diagnostics Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 29th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, January 14th will be given a $0.75 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, January 14th. This represents a $3.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.87%. Quest Diagnostics’s dividend payout ratio is currently 40.32%.

Insider Transactions at Quest Diagnostics

In related news, SVP Karthik Kuppusamy sold 1,775 shares of Quest Diagnostics stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, October 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $156.92, for a total transaction of $278,533.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 9,734 shares in the company, valued at $1,527,459.28. The trade was a 15.42 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Michael J. Deppe sold 18,755 shares of Quest Diagnostics stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $154.05, for a total value of $2,889,207.75. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 34,941 shares in the company, valued at $5,382,661.05. This represents a 34.93 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 22,520 shares of company stock worth $3,472,728. 0.79% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on the company. Robert W. Baird raised Quest Diagnostics from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and raised their price objective for the company from $157.00 to $182.00 in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. StockNews.com cut Quest Diagnostics from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, November 8th. Mizuho raised their price objective on Quest Diagnostics from $160.00 to $174.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, October 24th. Barclays raised their price objective on Quest Diagnostics from $154.00 to $168.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Finally, Citigroup raised their price objective on Quest Diagnostics from $165.00 to $185.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Quest Diagnostics presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $164.58.

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.