Michael E. Prevoznik Sells 4,643 Shares of Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX) Stock

Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX) SVP Michael E. Prevoznik sold 4,643 shares of Quest Diagnostics stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $170.00, for a total transaction of $789,310.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 38,117 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,479,890. The trade was a 10.86 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link.

Quest Diagnostics Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE DGX opened at $166.25 on Friday. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $164.88 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $158.53. The stock has a market cap of $18.45 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.62, a PEG ratio of 2.16 and a beta of 0.92. The company has a current ratio of 1.10, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.82. Quest Diagnostics Incorporated has a 12 month low of $125.42 and a 12 month high of $178.87.

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The medical research company reported $2.23 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.19 by $0.04. Quest Diagnostics had a net margin of 8.80% and a return on equity of 15.07%. As a group, analysts predict that Quest Diagnostics Incorporated will post 9.7 earnings per share for the current year.

Quest Diagnostics Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 21st. Stockholders of record on Monday, April 7th will be paid a $0.80 dividend. This is an increase from Quest Diagnostics’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.75. The ex-dividend date is Monday, April 7th. This represents a $3.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.92%. Quest Diagnostics’s dividend payout ratio is presently 41.61%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of DGX. Landscape Capital Management L.L.C. acquired a new stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $1,363,000. Sanctuary Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Quest Diagnostics by 85.5% during the third quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC now owns 17,969 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $2,940,000 after buying an additional 8,282 shares in the last quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC grew its position in Quest Diagnostics by 7.7% during the third quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC now owns 92,830 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $14,412,000 after buying an additional 6,619 shares during the period. BankPlus Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Quest Diagnostics in the fourth quarter valued at $355,000. Finally, Van ECK Associates Corp raised its position in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 980.3% in the fourth quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 24,198 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $3,650,000 after acquiring an additional 21,958 shares during the period. 88.06% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have weighed in on DGX. Robert W. Baird raised their target price on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $190.00 to $191.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday. Jefferies Financial Group restated a “buy” rating and set a $185.00 target price (up from $175.00) on shares of Quest Diagnostics in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. StockNews.com cut Quest Diagnostics from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Barclays boosted their price target on Quest Diagnostics from $168.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Finally, UBS Group increased their price objective on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $166.00 to $170.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $178.38.

About Quest Diagnostics

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.