Analysts Set Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX) Price Target at $236.31

Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX) has earned an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the thirteen research firms that are covering the stock, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, five have assigned a buy recommendation and one has given a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 1 year price objective among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $237.0769.

Several brokerages have issued reports on DGX. UBS Group upped their target price on Quest Diagnostics from $232.00 to $245.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 8th. Truist Financial lifted their price target on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $250.00 to $260.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Quest Diagnostics from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 28th. Robert W. Baird increased their target price on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $236.00 to $255.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, July 24th. Finally, Barclays boosted their price target on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $230.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 23rd.

Insider Activity at Quest Diagnostics

In other news, SVP Mark E. Delaney sold 1,600 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, the senior vice president owned 10,335 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,430,585.30. This trade represents a 13.41% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CEO J. E. Davis sold 10,000 shares of Quest Diagnostics stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $242.72, for a total transaction of $2,427,200.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 122,423 shares in the company, valued at approximately $29,714,510.56. The trade was a 7.55% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders sold 34,277 shares of company stock worth $8,316,493 in the last ninety days. 0.88% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Quest Diagnostics

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 25.0% in the 2nd quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 33,797 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $7,163,000 after buying an additional 6,767 shares during the last quarter. Pinnacle Wealth Management Advisory Group LLC bought a new position in shares of Quest Diagnostics during the second quarter valued at approximately $226,000. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC lifted its stake in Quest Diagnostics by 5.2% in the second quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC now owns 11,961 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $2,535,000 after acquiring an additional 589 shares during the period. NewEdge Advisors LLC increased its position in Quest Diagnostics by 4.6% during the 2nd quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 12,508 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $2,651,000 after purchasing an additional 550 shares during the period. Finally, Baird Financial Group Inc. increased its position in Quest Diagnostics by 4.2% during the 2nd quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. now owns 17,006 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $3,604,000 after purchasing an additional 678 shares during the period. 88.06% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Quest Diagnostics Price Performance

DGX stock opened at $244.81 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 1.59 and a quick ratio of 1.46. Quest Diagnostics has a one year low of $171.18 and a one year high of $248.84. The stock has a market cap of $27.02 billion, a PE ratio of 25.99, a P/E/G ratio of 2.25 and a beta of 0.55. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $234.01 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $210.90.

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

Quest Diagnostics Dividend Announcement

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

About Quest Diagnostics

Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE: DGX) is a provider of diagnostic information services. The company performs laboratory testing used to help diagnose, monitor and manage diseases and other health conditions, serving physicians, hospitals, health plans, employers, government agencies and individual consumers.

Its services include routine blood and urine testing, advanced and esoteric diagnostics, molecular and genetic testing, anatomic pathology, cancer testing, drug screening and wellness-related assessments.