Balyasny Asset Management L.P. Sells 67,049 Shares of Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX)

Balyasny Asset Management L.P. cut its position in shares of Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX) by 37.3% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 112,563 shares of the medical research company’s stock after selling 67,049 shares during the period. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. owned about 0.10% of Quest Diagnostics worth $16,981,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. BankPlus Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Quest Diagnostics in the 4th quarter valued at $355,000. Van ECK Associates Corp raised its holdings in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 980.3% in the 4th quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 24,198 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $3,650,000 after buying an additional 21,958 shares in the last quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. bought a new position in shares of Quest Diagnostics during the fourth quarter valued at $54,000. Clean Yield Group increased its holdings in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 17.7% during the fourth quarter. Clean Yield Group now owns 26,428 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $3,987,000 after buying an additional 3,983 shares in the last quarter. Finally, SVB Wealth LLC bought a new position in shares of Quest Diagnostics in the fourth quarter valued at about $10,345,000. 88.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, SVP Michael E. Prevoznik sold 604 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $170.99, for a total value of $103,277.96. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 39,845 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,813,096.55. This trade represents a 1.49 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO J. E. Davis sold 39,191 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $168.46, for a total transaction of $6,602,115.86. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 127,623 shares in the company, valued at $21,499,370.58. This trade represents a 23.49 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 54,250 shares of company stock valued at $9,188,295. Company insiders own 8.16% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have weighed in on DGX. Redburn Partners set a $195.00 price objective on shares of Quest Diagnostics in a research report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Barclays boosted their price objective on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $175.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Citigroup lowered Quest Diagnostics from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $185.00 price objective on the stock. in a research report on Tuesday, March 4th. Truist Financial upped their price target on Quest Diagnostics from $182.00 to $190.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 23rd. Finally, Redburn Atlantic began coverage on Quest Diagnostics in a research report on Wednesday, April 2nd. They issued a “buy” rating and a $195.00 price objective for the company. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $185.73.

Quest Diagnostics Stock Performance

Shares of Quest Diagnostics stock opened at $176.56 on Thursday. Quest Diagnostics Incorporated has a 12 month low of $135.47 and a 12 month high of $179.32. 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 company has a market capitalization of $19.71 billion, a PE ratio of 22.96, a PEG ratio of 2.16 and a beta of 0.52. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $169.68 and its 200 day simple moving average is $162.56.

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, April 22nd. The medical research company reported $2.21 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.15 by $0.06. Quest Diagnostics had a return on equity of 15.07% and a net margin of 8.80%. The business had revenue of $2.65 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.63 billion. On average, research analysts predict that Quest Diagnostics Incorporated will post 9.7 EPS for the current year.

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.