Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. Increases Holdings in Quest Diagnostics Incorporated $DGX

Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. boosted its stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX) by 22.0% during the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 26,801 shares of the medical research company’s stock after buying an additional 4,827 shares during the period. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co.’s holdings in Quest Diagnostics were worth $5,681,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 3.7% during the 4th quarter. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC now owns 1,387 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $241,000 after acquiring an additional 50 shares during the last quarter. Ossiam increased its position in Quest Diagnostics by 6.1% during the third quarter. Ossiam now owns 1,059 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $202,000 after purchasing an additional 61 shares during the last quarter. Independent Advisor Alliance increased its position in Quest Diagnostics by 1.6% during the fourth quarter. Independent Advisor Alliance now owns 4,298 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $746,000 after purchasing an additional 66 shares during the last quarter. Brown Advisory Inc. raised its stake in Quest Diagnostics by 1.0% during the fourth quarter. Brown Advisory Inc. now owns 7,287 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $1,265,000 after purchasing an additional 71 shares during the period. Finally, Hantz Financial Services Inc. boosted its holdings in Quest Diagnostics by 9.6% in the 4th quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 835 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $145,000 after purchasing an additional 73 shares during the last quarter. 88.06% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO J. E. Davis sold 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $242.72, for a total value of $2,427,200.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 122,423 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $29,714,510.56. This trade represents a 7.55% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, SVP Mark E. Delaney sold 1,600 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $235.18, for a total transaction 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 ownership of the stock. 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 a total of 34,277 shares of company stock worth $8,316,493 over the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.88% of the company’s stock.

Quest Diagnostics Stock Down 0.5%

NYSE:DGX opened at $239.60 on Friday. Quest Diagnostics Incorporated has a 52 week low of $171.18 and a 52 week high of $247.19. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $227.10 and its two-hundred day moving average is $208.11. The stock has a market capitalization of $26.44 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.44, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.20 and a beta of 0.55. The company has a quick ratio of 1.46, a current ratio of 1.59 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72.

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 23rd. The medical research company reported $3.12 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.82 by $0.30. Quest Diagnostics had a return on equity of 16.01% and a net margin of 9.18%.The firm had revenue of $3.04 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.97 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $2.62 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 10.2% compared to the same quarter last year. 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 EPS for the current year.

Quest Diagnostics Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 21st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, October 6th will be given a $0.86 dividend. This represents a $3.44 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, October 6th. Quest Diagnostics’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 36.52%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

DGX has been the topic of several analyst reports. Robert W. Baird lifted their price target on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $236.00 to $255.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, July 24th. Barclays lifted their target price on Quest Diagnostics from $230.00 to $250.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 23rd. Weiss Ratings raised Quest Diagnostics from a “buy (b+)” rating to a “buy (a-)” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 12th. Mizuho raised their price objective on Quest Diagnostics from $235.00 to $260.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, July 24th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Quest Diagnostics from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 28th. One research 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. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $235.31.

Quest Diagnostics 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.