Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX) Shares Sold by Truvestments Capital LLC

Truvestments Capital LLC lowered its position in Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX) by 3.4% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 2,428 shares of the medical research company’s stock after selling 86 shares during the quarter. Truvestments Capital LLC’s holdings in Quest Diagnostics were worth $366,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Landscape Capital Management L.L.C. bought a new position in shares of Quest Diagnostics in the third quarter valued at approximately $1,363,000. Sanctuary Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 85.5% in the third quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC now owns 17,969 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $2,940,000 after acquiring an additional 8,282 shares in the last quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 7.7% in the third quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC now owns 92,830 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $14,412,000 after acquiring an additional 6,619 shares in the last quarter. BankPlus Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Quest Diagnostics in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $355,000. Finally, Van ECK Associates Corp boosted its holdings in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 980.3% in the fourth quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 24,198 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $3,650,000 after acquiring an additional 21,958 shares in the last quarter. 88.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Quest Diagnostics

In related news, Director Vicky B. Gregg sold 1,250 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, the director now owns 16,867 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,775,802.19. This represents a 6.90 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Catherine T. Doherty sold 5,370 shares of Quest Diagnostics stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $174.13, for a total transaction of $935,078.10. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 68,068 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $11,852,680.84. This trade represents a 7.31 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 9,514 shares of company stock valued at $1,634,445 in the last three months. Corporate insiders own 0.79% of the company’s stock.

Quest Diagnostics Trading Down 1.0 %

Quest Diagnostics stock opened at $166.43 on Thursday. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $162.84 and a 200 day moving average price of $157.94. Quest Diagnostics Incorporated has a 52 week low of $125.09 and a 52 week high of $178.87. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.82, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a current ratio of 1.10. The firm has a market capitalization of $18.47 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.64, a P/E/G ratio of 2.16 and a beta of 0.92.

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

Quest Diagnostics Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 21st. Shareholders of record on Monday, April 7th will be given a $0.80 dividend. This is a positive change from Quest Diagnostics’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.75. This represents a $3.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.92%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, April 7th. Quest Diagnostics’s dividend payout ratio is presently 41.61%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

DGX has been the subject of a number of research reports. Leerink Partners upgraded shares of Quest Diagnostics from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and raised their target price for the stock from $169.00 to $174.00 in a report on Monday, January 6th. Leerink Partnrs upgraded shares of Quest Diagnostics from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, January 6th. Jefferies Financial Group restated a “buy” rating and set a $185.00 target price (up from $175.00) on shares of Quest Diagnostics in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. Robert W. Baird set a $189.00 target price on shares of Quest Diagnostics in a report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Citigroup cut shares of Quest Diagnostics from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $185.00 target price for the company. in a report on Tuesday, March 4th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $178.23.

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.