Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX) SVP Patrick Plewman Sells 5,662 Shares

Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX) SVP Patrick Plewman sold 5,662 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $204.00, for a total transaction of $1,155,048.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president owned 15,381 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,137,724. This trade represents a 26.91% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website.

Quest Diagnostics Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:DGX traded down $2.20 on Thursday, hitting $207.12. The company had a trading volume of 1,670,822 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,146,603. The company has a current ratio of 1.04, a quick ratio of 1.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72. The company has a market cap of $23.04 billion, a PE ratio of 23.67, a PEG ratio of 2.55 and a beta of 0.66. Quest Diagnostics Incorporated has a 52-week low of $157.20 and a 52-week high of $213.20. The business has a 50 day moving average of $182.31 and a 200 day moving average of $181.96.

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 10th. The medical research company reported $2.42 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates 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 company’s quarterly revenue was up 7.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $2.23 earnings per share. Quest Diagnostics has set its FY 2026 guidance at 9.45-9.650 EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Quest Diagnostics Incorporated will post 9.7 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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

Quest Diagnostics Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 20th. Investors of record on Monday, April 6th will be issued 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 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.7%. Quest Diagnostics’s payout ratio is 39.31%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on the stock. Leerink Partners raised their target price on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $203.00 to $210.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 21st. Evercore ISI set a $220.00 price target on Quest Diagnostics in a report on Wednesday. Mizuho raised their price objective on Quest Diagnostics from $210.00 to $235.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday. Jefferies Financial Group upped their target price on Quest Diagnostics from $215.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, Barclays increased their target price on Quest Diagnostics from $210.00 to $225.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Quest Diagnostics currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $208.93.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Quest Diagnostics

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of DGX. Cibc World Markets Corp acquired a new position in shares of Quest Diagnostics in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $3,239,000. Index Technologies Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics during the fourth quarter worth approximately $821,000. Hilton Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 0.9% in the fourth quarter. Hilton Capital Management LLC now owns 47,776 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $8,291,000 after buying an additional 438 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its stake in Quest Diagnostics by 1.3% during the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,931,548 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $335,204,000 after acquiring an additional 24,038 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Ironsides Asset Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Quest Diagnostics by 54.6% during the 4th quarter. Ironsides Asset Advisors LLC now owns 2,250 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $390,000 after acquiring an additional 795 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 88.06% of the company’s stock.

Key Headlines Impacting Quest Diagnostics

Here are the key news stories impacting Quest Diagnostics this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q4 results and outlook beat expectations — Quest reported better‑than‑expected Q4 revenue and EPS and set FY‑2026 guidance that implies continued earnings growth, which helped push the stock to a 12‑month high. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Board approved a $1.0 billion buyback (≈4.7% of shares outstanding) — a sign management views the stock as undervalued and a near‑term support for EPS and share price. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Dividend hike — Quest raised the quarterly payout to $0.86 (7.5% increase), which increases income appeal to dividend investors. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts lifting targets and reiterating buys — Mizuho raised its price target to $235 (outperform) and Barclays to $225 (overweight), signaling additional upside from current levels and reinforcing the bullish narrative. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Firm-level bullish coverage — Morgan Stanley reiterated a Buy (citing margin expansion and high‑margin segment growth), and Citigroup published a favorable forecast for strong price appreciation, adding institutional support. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: CEO comments on Alzheimer’s blood testing — management highlighted long‑term product opportunities (earlier diagnosis), which supports growth thesis but is longer‑dated and execution‑dependent. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Earnings call transcript and market commentary are available for deeper review — useful for investors wanting details on margin drivers and guidance assumptions. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst and market pieces question sustainability of the rally — research notes (e.g., Zacks) examine whether fundamentals justify further multiple expansion; worth reviewing if sizing new positions. Article Title

Quest Diagnostics Company 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.