Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX) Sees Large Growth in Short Interest

Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX) was the recipient of a significant growth in short interest during the month of January. As of January 15th, there was short interest totalling 2,030,000 shares, a growth of 6.3% from the December 31st total of 1,910,000 shares. Approximately 1.8% of the shares of the company are short sold. Based on an average daily volume of 819,800 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 2.5 days.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on DGX. Morgan Stanley raised Quest Diagnostics from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $145.00 to $172.00 in a research report on Tuesday, December 17th. StockNews.com upgraded Quest Diagnostics from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. Baird R W upgraded Quest Diagnostics from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Leerink Partners upgraded Quest Diagnostics from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and boosted their target price for the company from $169.00 to $174.00 in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group restated a “buy” rating and issued a $185.00 target price (up previously from $175.00) on shares of Quest Diagnostics in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $175.77.

Quest Diagnostics Stock Performance

Shares of Quest Diagnostics stock opened at $162.70 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $18.16 billion, a PE ratio of 21.09, a PEG ratio of 2.54 and a beta of 0.91. Quest Diagnostics has a 12 month low of $123.18 and a 12 month high of $167.08. The company has a current ratio of 1.10, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.82. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $155.40 and its 200 day simple moving average is $153.70.

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX) last released its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The medical research company reported $2.23 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.19 by $0.04. Quest Diagnostics had a return on equity of 15.07% and a net margin of 8.80%. On average, research analysts predict that Quest Diagnostics will post 9.71 EPS for the current year.

Quest Diagnostics Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 21st. Stockholders of record on Monday, April 7th will be issued a $0.80 dividend. This is a boost from Quest Diagnostics’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.75. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, April 7th. This represents a $3.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.97%. Quest Diagnostics’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 39.01%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CAO Michael J. Deppe sold 18,755 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 6th. The stock was 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 of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,382,661.05. The trade was a 34.93 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. 0.79% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Quest Diagnostics

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Sierra Ocean LLC bought a new position in Quest Diagnostics during the fourth quarter worth about $33,000. Versant Capital Management Inc grew its holdings in Quest Diagnostics by 340.4% during the fourth 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 bought a new position in Quest Diagnostics during the fourth quarter worth about $38,000. Sunbelt Securities Inc. bought a new position in Quest Diagnostics during the second quarter worth about $40,000. Finally, FPC Investment Advisory Inc. bought a new position in Quest Diagnostics during the fourth quarter worth about $45,000. Institutional investors own 88.06% of the company’s stock.

Quest Diagnostics Company 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.