Swedbank AB Purchases 8,605 Shares of Quest Diagnostics Incorporated $DGX

Swedbank AB lifted its position in Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX) by 10.1% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 93,468 shares of the medical research company’s stock after buying an additional 8,605 shares during the period. Swedbank AB’s holdings in Quest Diagnostics were worth $16,220,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. JFS Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 114.3% in the fourth quarter. JFS Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 150 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 80 shares in the last quarter. Harbor Investment Advisory LLC lifted its stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 113.7% in the fourth quarter. Harbor Investment Advisory LLC now owns 156 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 83 shares in the last quarter. McIlrath & Eck LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics during the 4th quarter valued at about $32,000. First Horizon Corp purchased a new stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics during the 3rd quarter valued at about $33,000. Finally, Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics during the 3rd quarter valued at about $33,000. Institutional investors own 88.06% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Quest Diagnostics

In other news, SVP Patrick Plewman sold 5,662 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $204.00, for a total value of $1,155,048.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president owned 15,381 shares in the company, valued at $3,137,724. This represents a 26.91% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, SVP Michael E. Prevoznik sold 3,878 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $206.21, for a total transaction of $799,682.38. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president owned 37,557 shares in the company, valued at $7,744,628.97. This trade represents a 9.36% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold 24,083 shares of company stock worth $4,945,262 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.88% of the company’s stock.

Quest Diagnostics Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:DGX opened at $187.43 on Friday. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $198.21 and its 200-day moving average price is $189.77. Quest Diagnostics Incorporated has a twelve month low of $164.65 and a twelve month high of $213.50. The company has a quick ratio of 1.08, a current ratio of 1.18 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67. The stock has a market capitalization of $20.75 billion, a PE ratio of 20.71, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.27 and a beta of 0.60.

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 21st. The medical research company reported $2.50 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.37 by $0.13. Quest Diagnostics had a net margin of 9.07% and a return on equity of 15.60%. The firm had revenue of $2.90 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.83 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.94 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 9.2% on a year-over-year basis. Quest Diagnostics has set its FY 2026 guidance at 10.630-10.830 EPS. Equities research analysts expect that Quest Diagnostics Incorporated will post 10.73 EPS for the current year.

Quest Diagnostics declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock buyback program on Tuesday, February 10th that allows the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the medical research company to buy up to 4.7% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are often a sign that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Quest Diagnostics Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 20th. Stockholders of record on Monday, April 6th were paid a $0.86 dividend. This is a boost from Quest Diagnostics’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.80. The ex-dividend date was Monday, April 6th. This represents a $3.44 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.8%. Quest Diagnostics’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 38.01%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

DGX has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Quest Diagnostics from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, April 25th. UBS Group raised their price target on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $210.00 to $220.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 22nd. Barclays raised their price target on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $225.00 to $230.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 22nd. Citigroup raised their price target on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $190.00 to $215.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 10th. Finally, Truist Financial raised their price target on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $220.00 to $225.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 22nd. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $216.58.

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.