Rhumbline Advisers Cuts Stake in Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX)

Rhumbline Advisers lessened its stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX) by 3.0% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 279,640 shares of the medical research company’s stock after selling 8,647 shares during the period. Rhumbline Advisers’ holdings in Quest Diagnostics were worth $42,186,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Versant Capital Management Inc raised its holdings in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 340.4% in the 4th quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 251 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $38,000 after purchasing an additional 194 shares during the period. First Financial Corp IN purchased a new stake in Quest Diagnostics in the fourth quarter worth $38,000. Global Trust Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics in the fourth quarter valued at $49,000. Sentry Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Quest Diagnostics during the 3rd quarter valued at $82,000. Finally, Board of the Pension Protection Fund bought a new position in shares of Quest Diagnostics during the 4th quarter worth $91,000. Institutional investors own 88.06% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have commented on the stock. Barclays upped their price objective on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $168.00 to $175.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Leerink Partners upgraded shares of Quest Diagnostics from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $169.00 to $174.00 in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Truist Financial increased their target price on Quest Diagnostics from $172.00 to $182.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Baird R W upgraded Quest Diagnostics from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Finally, StockNews.com cut Quest Diagnostics from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Quest Diagnostics currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $177.69.

Insider Transactions at Quest Diagnostics

In other news, Director Vicky B. Gregg sold 1,250 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated 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 approximately $2,775,802.19. The trade was a 6.90 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, SVP Mark E. Delaney sold 403 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, the senior vice president now owns 4,624 shares in the company, valued at approximately $759,723.20. The trade was a 8.02 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.79% of the company’s stock.

Quest Diagnostics Stock Performance

NYSE DGX opened at $168.97 on Tuesday. Quest Diagnostics Incorporated has a 52-week low of $123.30 and a 52-week high of $171.30. The company has a fifty day moving average of $156.35 and a 200-day moving average of $155.31. The company has a market capitalization of $18.86 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.97, a P/E/G ratio of 2.04 and a beta of 0.91. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.82, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a current ratio of 1.10.

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The medical research company reported $2.23 earnings per share (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, equities research analysts predict that Quest Diagnostics Incorporated will post 9.7 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Quest Diagnostics Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 21st. Shareholders of record on Monday, April 7th will be paid a dividend of $0.80 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, April 7th. This is an increase from Quest Diagnostics’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.75. This represents a $3.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.89%. Quest Diagnostics’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 39.01%.

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.