Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX) Stock: Insider Patrick Plewman Sells 11,717 Shares

Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX) SVP Patrick Plewman sold 11,717 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $257.34, for a total transaction of $3,015,252.78. Following the sale, the senior vice president owned 14,684 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,778,780.56. The trade was a 44.38% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan.

Quest Diagnostics Price Performance

Quest Diagnostics stock opened at $259.46 on Friday. Quest Diagnostics Incorporated has a 12 month low of $171.18 and a 12 month high of $262.00. The company has a current ratio of 1.70, a quick ratio of 1.58 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $241.23 and its 200 day simple moving average is $215.58. The company has a market cap of $28.55 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.84, a PEG ratio of 2.32 and a beta of 0.55.

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 22nd. The medical research company reported $3.00 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.87 by $0.13. Quest Diagnostics had a return on equity of 16.21% and a net margin of 9.53%. The business had revenue of $3.10 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.05 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $2.60 earnings per share. Quest Diagnostics’s revenue was up 10.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts forecast that Quest Diagnostics Incorporated will post 11.29 EPS for the current year.

Quest Diagnostics Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 27th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, January 12th will be paid a dividend of $0.86 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, January 12th. This represents a $3.44 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.3%. Quest Diagnostics’s dividend payout ratio is presently 34.26%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have commented on the stock. Robert W. Baird set a $262.00 price objective on shares of Quest Diagnostics in a report on Friday, October 23rd. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $245.00 target price on shares of Quest Diagnostics in a research note on Thursday, July 23rd. UBS Group reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $250.00 target price on shares of Quest Diagnostics in a research note on Monday, October 19th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $220.00 to $250.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 28th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Quest Diagnostics from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 28th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have assigned a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Quest Diagnostics presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $248.70.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. BlackRock Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics during the second quarter valued at about $1,965,923,000. EdgePoint Investment Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 35.1% in the first quarter. EdgePoint Investment Group Inc. now owns 2,243,869 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $439,753,000 after acquiring an additional 582,797 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its position in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 0.9% in the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,949,535 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $382,085,000 after acquiring an additional 17,987 shares during the period. Bank of America Corp DE purchased a new position in Quest Diagnostics during the second quarter valued at approximately $410,151,000. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC grew its stake in Quest Diagnostics by 11.3% during the second quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 942,407 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $199,743,000 after acquiring an additional 95,804 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 88.06% of the company’s stock.

Quest Diagnostics News Roundup

Here’s some of the latest news about DGX:

• Positive Sentiment: A Yahoo Finance article says DGX could be 31% undervalued following a push for the RESULTS Act, providing a potentially supportive policy and valuation angle. Quest Diagnostics stock could be undervalued following RESULTS Act push
• Positive Sentiment: Quest announced a quarterly dividend of $0.86 per share, equivalent to $3.44 annually and a stated yield of about 1.3%. The announcement coincided with DGX reaching a new one-year high. Quest Diagnostics hits a one-year high following dividend announcement
• Neutral Sentiment: SVP Patrick Plewman sold 11,717 shares for about $3.02 million, reducing his holdings by 44.38%. The sale was made under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 plan, which makes it a less definitive signal about his view of the company. Quest Diagnostics insider share sale

About Quest Diagnostics

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE: DGX) is a provider of diagnostic information services, conducting laboratory tests that help physicians and other health care professionals diagnose, monitor and manage medical conditions. Its services include routine blood and other clinical laboratory testing, anatomic pathology, and specialized molecular and genetic testing. The company serves patients, physicians, hospitals, health plans, employers and government organizations. In addition to testing performed through its laboratories and patient service centers, Quest offers services such as workplace drug testing and diagnostic support for clinical research.