Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX) Price Target Raised to $175.00 at Barclays

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX) had its price target increased by research analysts at Barclays from $168.00 to $175.00 in a research note issued to investors on Friday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has an “equal weight” rating on the medical research company’s stock. Barclays‘s target price points to a potential upside of 6.73% from the company’s previous close.

Several other research firms have also commented on DGX. Leerink Partnrs raised Quest Diagnostics from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, January 6th. UBS Group increased their price objective on Quest Diagnostics from $165.00 to $166.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Baird R W upgraded Quest Diagnostics from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Truist Financial increased their price target on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $158.00 to $165.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, October 7th. Finally, Bank of America upped their target price on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $179.00 to $182.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, December 13th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $172.69.

Quest Diagnostics Trading Up 5.5 %

NYSE:DGX opened at $163.97 on Friday. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $155.42 and a 200 day moving average price of $153.43. The company has a current ratio of 1.25, a quick ratio of 1.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.83. Quest Diagnostics has a 12-month low of $123.04 and a 12-month high of $167.08. The firm has a market cap of $18.30 billion, a PE ratio of 22.04, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.43 and a beta of 0.90.

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX) last released its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The medical research company reported $2.23 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.19 by $0.04. Quest Diagnostics had a net margin of 8.82% and a return on equity of 15.25%. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Quest Diagnostics will post 8.9 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Quest Diagnostics

In related news, CAO Michael J. Deppe sold 18,755 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $154.05, for a total value of $2,889,207.75. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 34,941 shares in the company, valued at $5,382,661.05. The trade was a 34.93 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.79% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in DGX. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans grew its stake in Quest Diagnostics by 2.6% in the 2nd quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 9,571 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $1,310,000 after acquiring an additional 244 shares during the period. Creative Planning boosted its position in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 20.4% in the second quarter. Creative Planning now owns 11,407 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $1,561,000 after acquiring an additional 1,929 shares during the last quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Quest Diagnostics by 11.8% in the second quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 7,188 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $984,000 after purchasing an additional 757 shares during the period. Sunbelt Securities Inc. acquired a new position in Quest Diagnostics during the second quarter worth approximately $40,000. Finally, Quarry LP purchased a new position in Quest Diagnostics during the second quarter worth approximately $74,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.