Quest Diagnostics Incorporated $DGX Stock Position Lifted by Brighton Jones LLC

Brighton Jones LLC boosted its position in shares of Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX) by 101.5% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 4,353 shares of the medical research company’s stock after buying an additional 2,193 shares during the quarter. Brighton Jones LLC’s holdings in Quest Diagnostics were worth $1,015,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics in the 2nd quarter valued at $1,965,923,000. EdgePoint Investment Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 35.1% during the first quarter. EdgePoint Investment Group Inc. now owns 2,243,869 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $439,753,000 after acquiring an additional 582,797 shares during the period. Bank of America Corp DE acquired a new position in shares of Quest Diagnostics during the second quarter valued at $410,151,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its holdings in Quest Diagnostics by 0.9% in the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,949,535 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $382,085,000 after acquiring an additional 17,987 shares during the last quarter. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC boosted its holdings in Quest Diagnostics by 11.3% in the second quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 942,407 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $199,743,000 after acquiring an additional 95,804 shares during the last quarter. 88.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In related news, SVP Michael Prevoznik sold 22,677 shares of Quest Diagnostics stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $243.11, for a total transaction of $5,513,005.47. Following the transaction, the senior vice president owned 37,557 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,130,482.27. This trade represents a 37.65% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CEO J. Davis sold 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 1st. The shares were 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 of the company’s stock, valued at $29,714,510.56. This trade represents a 7.55% decrease in their position. 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. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 55,985 shares of company stock valued at $13,715,017. Insiders own 0.88% of the company’s stock.

Quest Diagnostics Trading Down 0.0%

NYSE DGX opened at $258.43 on Thursday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $240.46 and a 200 day simple moving average of $214.82. The company has a market capitalization of $28.43 billion, a PE ratio of 23.41, a P/E/G ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 0.55. The company has a current ratio of 1.70, a quick ratio of 1.58 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70. Quest Diagnostics Incorporated has a 12 month low of $171.18 and a 12 month high of $260.29.

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, October 22nd. The medical research company reported $3.00 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.87 by $0.13. Quest Diagnostics had a return on equity of 16.21% and a net margin of 9.53%. The firm had revenue of $3.10 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.05 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $2.60 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 10.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts forecast that Quest Diagnostics Incorporated will post 11.29 EPS for the current year.

Quest Diagnostics Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 27th. Investors of record on Tuesday, January 12th will be given a $0.86 dividend. This represents a $3.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.3%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, January 12th. Quest Diagnostics’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 34.26%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have weighed in on DGX. Mizuho boosted their price objective on Quest Diagnostics from $235.00 to $260.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, July 24th. Robert W. Baird set a $262.00 target price on shares of Quest Diagnostics in a research note on Friday, October 23rd. Barclays lifted their price target on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $250.00 to $260.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 7th. Argus set a $260.00 price target on shares of Quest Diagnostics in a research note on Wednesday, July 29th. Finally, UBS Group restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $250.00 price objective on shares of Quest Diagnostics in a report on Monday, October 19th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have assigned a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Quest Diagnostics presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $248.70.

About Quest Diagnostics

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE: DGX) is a provider of diagnostic information services, conducting laboratory tests that help physicians and other health care professionals diagnose, monitor and manage medical conditions. Its services include routine blood and other clinical laboratory testing, anatomic pathology, and specialized molecular and genetic testing. The company serves patients, physicians, hospitals, health plans, employers and government organizations. In addition to testing performed through its laboratories and patient service centers, Quest offers services such as workplace drug testing and diagnostic support for clinical research.