Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX) Updates FY25 Earnings Guidance

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX) issued an update on its FY25 earnings guidance on Wednesday morning. The company provided earnings per share guidance of $9.55-9.80 for the period, compared to the consensus earnings per share estimate of $9.71. The company issued revenue guidance of $10.7-10.85 billion, compared to the consensus revenue estimate of $10.79 billion.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. Citigroup lowered Quest Diagnostics from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $185.00 price target on the stock. in a report on Tuesday, March 4th. Jefferies Financial Group reissued a “buy” rating and set a $185.00 price target (up previously from $175.00) on shares of Quest Diagnostics in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on Quest Diagnostics from $173.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. Leerink Partnrs raised Quest Diagnostics from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, January 6th. Finally, UBS Group lifted their price objective on Quest Diagnostics from $166.00 to $170.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $178.23.

Quest Diagnostics Trading Down 0.7 %

Shares of Quest Diagnostics stock opened at $172.22 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.82, a current ratio of 1.10 and a quick ratio of 1.02. Quest Diagnostics has a 1 year low of $125.42 and a 1 year high of $178.87. The company has a market capitalization of $19.11 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.40, a P/E/G ratio of 2.16 and a beta of 0.92. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $164.35 and a 200 day moving average price of $158.41.

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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%. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Quest Diagnostics will post 9.7 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Quest Diagnostics Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 21st. Investors of record on Monday, April 7th will be given a dividend of $0.80 per share. 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 1.86%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, April 7th. Quest Diagnostics’s payout ratio is currently 41.61%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Quest Diagnostics news, Director Vicky B. Gregg sold 1,250 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction 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 completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 16,867 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,775,802.19. The trade was a 6.90 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Catherine T. Doherty sold 535 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $169.71, for a total value of $90,794.85. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 71,356 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $12,109,826.76. This trade represents a 0.74 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 9,514 shares of company stock worth $1,634,445 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.79% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Quest Diagnostics

A hedge fund recently bought a new stake in Quest Diagnostics stock. Brighton Jones LLC purchased a new position in shares of Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 2,144 shares of the medical research company’s stock, valued at approximately $323,000. Institutional investors own 88.06% of the company’s stock.

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.