Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX) Hits New 52-Week High – Still a Buy?

Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX)’s share price reached a new 52-week high during trading on Monday . The stock traded as high as $162.68 and last traded at $162.53, with a volume of 50749 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $160.44.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

DGX has been the topic of a number of research reports. Barclays upped their price objective on Quest Diagnostics from $154.00 to $168.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. UBS Group lifted their target price on Quest Diagnostics from $165.00 to $166.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Evercore ISI began coverage on shares of Quest Diagnostics in a report on Wednesday, August 28th. They set an “in-line” rating and a $165.00 price target for the company. Citigroup lifted their target price on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $165.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Finally, Truist Financial upped their price target on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $158.00 to $165.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, October 7th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $164.58.

Quest Diagnostics Stock Up 1.2 %

The company has a quick ratio of 1.17, a current ratio of 1.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.83. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $153.99 and a 200 day moving average of $147.54. The firm has a market cap of $18.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.72, a PEG ratio of 2.77 and a beta of 0.89.

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 22nd. The medical research company reported $2.30 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.26 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $2.49 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.43 billion. Quest Diagnostics had a net margin of 8.82% and a return on equity of 15.25%. Quest Diagnostics’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $2.22 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Quest Diagnostics Incorporated will post 8.9 earnings per share for the current year.

Quest Diagnostics Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 29th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, January 14th will be issued a dividend of $0.75 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, January 14th. This represents a $3.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.85%. Quest Diagnostics’s dividend payout ratio is 40.32%.

Insider Transactions at Quest Diagnostics

In related news, CAO Michael J. Deppe sold 18,755 shares of the firm’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 transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 34,941 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,382,661.05. This trade represents a 34.93 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, SVP Karthik Kuppusamy sold 1,990 shares of Quest Diagnostics stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $153.26, for a total value of $304,987.40. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 11,459 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,756,206.34. The trade was a 14.80 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 22,520 shares of company stock valued at $3,472,728 over the last ninety days. 0.79% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Quest Diagnostics

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of DGX. Coldstream Capital Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 4.3% during the 3rd quarter. Coldstream Capital Management Inc. now owns 17,991 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $2,795,000 after buying an additional 744 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in Quest Diagnostics by 1.5% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,616,653 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $404,838,000 after acquiring an additional 39,217 shares during the last quarter. Barclays PLC increased its stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 35.9% in the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 298,922 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $46,407,000 after purchasing an additional 78,980 shares in the last quarter. SGL Investment Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics in the third quarter valued at approximately $4,167,000. Finally, MML Investors Services LLC lifted its stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 2.7% during the 3rd quarter. MML Investors Services LLC now owns 3,983 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $618,000 after buying an additional 106 shares in the last quarter. 88.06% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.