Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX) Price Target Raised to $180.00 at JPMorgan Chase & Co.

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX) had its price target raised by JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $173.00 to $180.00 in a report published on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a neutral rating on the medical research company’s stock.

Other equities research analysts have also issued research reports about the company. Leerink Partners upgraded Quest Diagnostics from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $169.00 to $174.00 in a research report on Monday, January 6th. UBS Group raised their price target on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $166.00 to $170.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $185.00 price objective (up previously from $175.00) on shares of Quest Diagnostics in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. Baird R W upgraded Quest Diagnostics from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Finally, Mizuho upped their price target on Quest Diagnostics from $177.00 to $178.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $177.69.

Quest Diagnostics Stock Up 0.6 %

NYSE:DGX opened at $163.43 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.82, a current ratio of 1.10 and a quick ratio of 1.02. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $155.40 and its 200-day moving average price is $153.81. Quest Diagnostics has a 1-year low of $123.18 and a 1-year high of $167.08. The firm has a market capitalization of $18.24 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.25, a PEG ratio of 2.54 and a beta of 0.91.

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The medical research company reported $2.23 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.19 by $0.04. Quest Diagnostics had a return on equity of 15.07% and a net margin of 8.80%. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Quest Diagnostics will post 9.71 EPS for the current year.

Quest Diagnostics Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 21st. Stockholders of record on Monday, April 7th will be given a $0.80 dividend. This represents a $3.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.96%. This is a boost from Quest Diagnostics’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.75. The ex-dividend date is Monday, April 7th. Quest Diagnostics’s dividend payout ratio is 39.01%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Quest Diagnostics

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Creative Planning boosted its stake in Quest Diagnostics by 20.4% during the second quarter. Creative Planning now owns 11,407 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $1,561,000 after buying an additional 1,929 shares during the last quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 11.8% during the 2nd quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 7,188 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $984,000 after acquiring an additional 757 shares during the last quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers grew its holdings in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 1.5% in the second quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 16,125 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $2,207,000 after purchasing an additional 243 shares during the period. Sanctuary Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Quest Diagnostics during the second quarter worth about $1,301,000. Finally, Park Avenue Securities LLC raised its stake in Quest Diagnostics by 33.1% during the third quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC now owns 4,214 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $654,000 after purchasing an additional 1,049 shares during the period. 88.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Quest Diagnostics Company Profile

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.