Jefferies Financial Group Inc. Sells 4,024 Shares of Quest Diagnostics Incorporated $DGX

Jefferies Financial Group Inc. cut its position in shares of Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX) by 15.8% in the third quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 21,436 shares of the medical research company’s stock after selling 4,024 shares during the period. Jefferies Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in Quest Diagnostics were worth $4,085,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in DGX. Pinnacle Associates Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 3.3% during the 3rd quarter. Pinnacle Associates Ltd. now owns 12,687 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $2,418,000 after acquiring an additional 401 shares in the last quarter. Blair William & Co. IL grew its holdings in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 7.4% in the third quarter. Blair William & Co. IL now owns 97,918 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $18,661,000 after purchasing an additional 6,709 shares in the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP increased its position in Quest Diagnostics by 5.7% in the third quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 371,548 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $70,810,000 after purchasing an additional 19,955 shares during the last quarter. HUB Investment Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Quest Diagnostics during the third quarter valued at $251,000. Finally, Gabelli Funds LLC lifted its position in Quest Diagnostics by 6.3% during the third quarter. Gabelli Funds LLC now owns 1,700 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $324,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 88.06% of the company’s stock.

Quest Diagnostics Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:DGX opened at $200.68 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.04, a quick ratio of 0.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72. Quest Diagnostics Incorporated has a 12 month low of $157.20 and a 12 month high of $213.50. The company has a market capitalization of $22.05 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.94, a PEG ratio of 2.61 and a beta of 0.66. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $192.69 and its 200 day moving average is $186.05.

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 10th. The medical research company reported $2.42 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.35 by $0.07. The business had revenue of $2.81 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.75 billion. Quest Diagnostics had a net margin of 8.99% and a return on equity of 15.57%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 7.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.23 earnings per share. Quest Diagnostics has set its FY 2026 guidance at 9.45-9.650 EPS. Research analysts predict that Quest Diagnostics Incorporated will post 9.7 EPS for the current year.

Quest Diagnostics declared that its Board of Directors has approved a share buyback program on Tuesday, February 10th that authorizes the company to buyback $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the medical research company to repurchase up to 4.7% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are usually an indication that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Quest Diagnostics Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 20th. Shareholders of record on Monday, April 6th will be paid a $0.86 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, April 6th. This is a positive change from Quest Diagnostics’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.80. This represents a $3.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.7%. Quest Diagnostics’s payout ratio is 36.57%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, SVP Michael E. Prevoznik sold 3,878 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $206.21, for a total transaction of $799,682.38. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 37,557 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,744,628.97. The trade was a 9.36% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Catherine T. Doherty sold 5,558 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $206.21, for a total transaction of $1,146,115.18. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 67,122 shares in the company, valued at approximately $13,841,227.62. The trade was a 7.65% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 24,083 shares of company stock worth $4,945,262. 8.16% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

DGX has been the topic of a number of research reports. Truist Financial boosted their target price on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $205.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 11th. UBS Group boosted their price objective on Quest Diagnostics from $190.00 to $210.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 11th. Citigroup raised their price objective on Quest Diagnostics from $190.00 to $215.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 10th. Robert W. Baird set a $219.00 target price on Quest Diagnostics in a report on Wednesday, February 11th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Quest Diagnostics in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Quest Diagnostics presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $210.29.

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.