3,167 Shares of Quest Diagnostics Incorporated $DGX Bought by Calamos Wealth Management LLC

Calamos Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX) during the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund acquired 3,167 shares of the medical research company’s stock, valued at approximately $738,000.

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of DGX. Calamos Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Quest Diagnostics by 101.4% in the third quarter. Calamos Advisors LLC now owns 88,732 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $20,681,000 after purchasing an additional 44,680 shares during the period. Kestra Advisory Services LLC raised its holdings in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 4.4% during the third quarter. Kestra Advisory Services LLC now owns 18,820 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $4,386,000 after purchasing an additional 793 shares during the period. Collaborative Fund Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 33.0% in the 3rd quarter. Collaborative Fund Advisors LLC now owns 2,658 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $620,000 after buying an additional 660 shares during the last quarter. Chicago Partners Investment Group LLC lifted its position in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 19.8% in the 3rd quarter. Chicago Partners Investment Group LLC now owns 4,211 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $1,019,000 after buying an additional 697 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Caldwell Trust Co boosted its holdings in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 12.7% in the 3rd quarter. Caldwell Trust Co now owns 14,837 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $3,458,000 after buying an additional 1,672 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 88.06% of the company’s stock.

Quest Diagnostics Stock Performance

DGX stock opened at $255.36 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70, a quick ratio of 1.58 and a current ratio of 1.70. The stock has a market capitalization of $28.09 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.43, a PEG ratio of 2.29 and a beta of 0.55. Quest Diagnostics Incorporated has a 1 year low of $171.18 and a 1 year high of $259.00. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $239.34 and its two-hundred day moving average is $213.68.

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 22nd. The medical research company reported $3.00 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.87 by $0.13. The company had revenue of $3.10 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.05 billion. Quest Diagnostics had a net margin of 9.53% and a return on equity of 16.21%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.60 earnings per share. On average, research analysts predict that Quest Diagnostics Incorporated will post 11.29 EPS for the current year.

Quest Diagnostics Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, October 21st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, October 6th were paid a dividend of $0.86 per share. This represents a $3.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, October 6th. Quest Diagnostics’s payout ratio is presently 34.26%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. UBS Group reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $250.00 price objective on shares of Quest Diagnostics in a research report on Monday, October 19th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $220.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 28th. Barclays raised their target price on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $250.00 to $260.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 7th. Argus set a $260.00 target price on Quest Diagnostics in a research note on Wednesday, July 29th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised Quest Diagnostics from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 28th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have given a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Quest Diagnostics presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $248.70.

Insider Activity

In other Quest Diagnostics news, Director Gary Pfeiffer sold 1,203 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, October 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $243.00, for a total value of $292,329.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 29,802 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,241,886. This represents a 3.88% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, EVP Catherine Doherty sold 22,105 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $248.02, for a total transaction of $5,482,482.10. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 71,949 shares in the company, valued at $17,844,790.98. The trade was a 23.50% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 55,985 shares of company stock valued at $13,715,017. Company insiders own 0.88% of the company’s stock.

About Quest Diagnostics

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE: DGX) is a provider of diagnostic information services, conducting laboratory tests that help physicians and other health care professionals diagnose, monitor and manage medical conditions. Its services include routine blood and other clinical laboratory testing, anatomic pathology, and specialized molecular and genetic testing.

The company serves patients, physicians, hospitals, health plans, employers and government organizations. In addition to testing performed through its laboratories and patient service centers, Quest offers services such as workplace drug testing and diagnostic support for clinical research.

Quest Diagnostics traces its roots to a clinical laboratory established in 1967 and became an independent company in 1996 after being spun off from Corning.