Barclays PLC Decreases Stock Holdings in Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX)

Barclays PLC cut its stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX) by 11.6% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 264,354 shares of the medical research company’s stock after selling 34,568 shares during the period. Barclays PLC’s holdings in Quest Diagnostics were worth $39,880,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. BankPlus Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Quest Diagnostics in the 4th quarter worth approximately $355,000. Van ECK Associates Corp boosted its stake in Quest Diagnostics by 980.3% during the fourth 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 during the last quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. acquired a new position in Quest Diagnostics during the fourth quarter worth $54,000. Clean Yield Group increased its stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 17.7% in the 4th quarter. Clean Yield Group now owns 26,428 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $3,987,000 after acquiring an additional 3,983 shares during the last quarter. Finally, SVB Wealth LLC purchased a new position in shares of Quest Diagnostics during the 4th quarter worth $10,345,000. 88.06% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Quest Diagnostics

In related news, CEO J. E. Davis sold 39,191 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $168.46, for a total value of $6,602,115.86. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 127,623 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $21,499,370.58. This represents a 23.49 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Catherine T. Doherty sold 535 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $169.71, for a total transaction of $90,794.85. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 71,356 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,109,826.76. The trade was a 0.74 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 55,903 shares of company stock valued at $9,460,221. Insiders own 0.79% of the company’s stock.

Quest Diagnostics Stock Performance

NYSE:DGX opened at $163.75 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $18.17 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.29, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.16 and a beta of 0.78. The company has a quick ratio of 1.02, a current ratio of 1.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.82. Quest Diagnostics Incorporated has a 52 week low of $125.42 and a 52 week high of $178.87. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $168.68 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $160.19.

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The medical research company reported $2.23 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.19 by $0.04. Quest Diagnostics had a return on equity of 15.07% and a net margin of 8.80%. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Quest Diagnostics Incorporated will post 9.7 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Quest Diagnostics Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 21st. Stockholders of record on Monday, April 7th will be issued a $0.80 dividend. This represents a $3.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.95%. This is a positive change from Quest Diagnostics’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.75. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, April 7th. Quest Diagnostics’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 41.61%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms recently issued reports on DGX. Robert W. Baird raised their price objective on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $190.00 to $191.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 20th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $173.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. Leerink Partnrs upgraded Quest Diagnostics from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, January 6th. Citigroup cut Quest Diagnostics from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $185.00 target price for the company. in a research note on Tuesday, March 4th. Finally, Redburn Atlantic began coverage on Quest Diagnostics in a research note on Wednesday, April 2nd. They issued a “buy” rating and a $195.00 price target on the stock. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $181.33.

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.