Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ Raises Stake in Quest Diagnostics Incorporated $DGX

Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ lifted its stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX) by 42.1% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 189,159 shares of the medical research company’s stock after purchasing an additional 56,082 shares during the quarter. Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ owned about 0.17% of Quest Diagnostics worth $33,979,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Boston Partners acquired a new position in shares of Quest Diagnostics during the first quarter worth about $388,724,000. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Quest Diagnostics during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $238,122,000. M&G PLC lifted its holdings in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 256.5% in the 2nd quarter. M&G PLC now owns 1,072,721 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $193,090,000 after buying an additional 771,824 shares during the period. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD boosted its stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 9.0% in the first quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 5,984,238 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $1,012,534,000 after buying an additional 493,960 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Nuveen LLC acquired a new position in Quest Diagnostics during the first quarter worth $55,587,000. 88.06% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Quest Diagnostics Stock Down 0.3%

DGX opened at $189.18 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $21.04 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.20, a PEG ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 0.58. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $184.28 and its 200 day simple moving average is $179.05. Quest Diagnostics Incorporated has a 52 week low of $148.70 and a 52 week high of $197.55. The company has a quick ratio of 1.04, a current ratio of 1.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71.

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, October 21st. The medical research company reported $2.60 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.51 by $0.09. The company had revenue of $2.82 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.73 billion. Quest Diagnostics had a net margin of 8.91% and a return on equity of 15.47%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 13.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.30 EPS. Quest Diagnostics has set its FY 2025 guidance at 9.760-9.840 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Quest Diagnostics Incorporated will post 9.7 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Quest Diagnostics Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 28th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, January 13th will be paid a dividend of $0.80 per share. This represents a $3.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, January 13th. Quest Diagnostics’s dividend payout ratio is currently 37.56%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have commented on DGX. UBS Group boosted their target price on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $180.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, October 17th. Evercore ISI raised their price objective on Quest Diagnostics from $185.00 to $190.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Robert W. Baird reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $194.00 target price on shares of Quest Diagnostics in a report on Monday, August 25th. Piper Sandler lifted their price target on Quest Diagnostics from $190.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, October 27th. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Quest Diagnostics from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, November 8th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have assigned a Buy rating and ten have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Quest Diagnostics presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $196.31.

Insider Buying and Selling at Quest Diagnostics

In other news, Director Vicky B. Gregg sold 1,250 shares of Quest Diagnostics stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $191.76, for a total value of $239,700.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 17,037 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,267,015.12. The trade was a 6.84% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Gary M. Pfeiffer sold 1,482 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, October 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $182.40, for a total value of $270,316.80. Following the transaction, the director owned 29,431 shares in the company, valued at $5,368,214.40. This trade represents a 4.79% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 94,461 shares of company stock valued at $17,957,361. 8.16% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.