SGL Investment Advisors Inc. Buys Shares of 27,290 Quest Diagnostics Incorporated $DGX

SGL Investment Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX) in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor purchased 27,290 shares of the medical research company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,485,000. Quest Diagnostics accounts for about 2.2% of SGL Investment Advisors Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 13th largest position.

Other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Quest Diagnostics during the 2nd quarter worth $1,965,923,000. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $229,522,000. Boston Partners grew its holdings in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 32.8% during the 3rd quarter. Boston Partners now owns 4,036,881 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $767,978,000 after purchasing an additional 997,033 shares during the last quarter. EdgePoint Investment Group Inc. increased its position in Quest Diagnostics by 95.5% during the 4th quarter. EdgePoint Investment Group Inc. now owns 1,661,072 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $288,246,000 after purchasing an additional 811,320 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp bought a new position in Quest Diagnostics in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $133,388,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 88.06% of the company’s stock.

Quest Diagnostics Stock Performance

NYSE:DGX opened at $241.80 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72, a quick ratio of 1.46 and a current ratio of 1.59. Quest Diagnostics Incorporated has a fifty-two week low of $171.18 and a fifty-two week high of $245.68. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $218.52 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $204.87. The company has a market capitalization of $26.69 billion, a PE ratio of 25.67, a P/E/G ratio of 2.23 and a beta of 0.56.

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 23rd. The medical research company reported $3.12 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.82 by $0.30. Quest Diagnostics had a net margin of 9.18% and a return on equity of 16.01%. The company had revenue of $3.04 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.97 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $2.62 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 10.2% on a year-over-year basis. Quest Diagnostics has set its FY 2026 guidance at 11.050-11.250 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that Quest Diagnostics Incorporated will post 11.15 earnings per share for the current year.

Quest Diagnostics Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 21st. Investors of record on Tuesday, October 6th will be given a dividend of $0.86 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, October 6th. This represents a $3.44 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.4%. Quest Diagnostics’s dividend payout ratio is presently 36.52%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have commented on the company. Wall Street Zen upgraded Quest Diagnostics from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 28th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on Quest Diagnostics from $220.00 to $250.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 28th. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $245.00 price objective on shares of Quest Diagnostics in a report on Thursday, July 23rd. Robert W. Baird lifted their target price on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $236.00 to $255.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, July 24th. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised shares of Quest Diagnostics from a “buy (b+)” rating to a “buy (a-)” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 12th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have issued a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $235.31.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, SVP Mark E. Delaney sold 1,600 shares of Quest Diagnostics stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $235.18, for a total value of $376,288.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president owned 10,335 shares in the company, valued at $2,430,585.30. The trade was a 13.41% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CEO J. E. Davis sold 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, June 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $194.14, for a total transaction of $1,941,400.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 132,423 shares in the company, valued at $25,708,601.22. The trade was a 7.02% 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. Insiders sold 19,747 shares of company stock valued at $3,947,088 over the last 90 days. Company insiders own 0.88% of the company’s stock.

Quest Diagnostics Company Profile

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE: DGX) is a leading provider of diagnostic information services that supports clinical decision-making for patients, physicians and healthcare organizations. The company operates a network of clinical laboratories and patient service centers that perform a broad range of laboratory tests and diagnostic assays used in routine care, disease diagnosis, monitoring and screening.

Its services span core clinical laboratory testing, anatomic pathology, molecular and genomic diagnostics, infectious disease testing and toxicology.