Lester Murray Antman dba SimplyRich Has $317,000 Stock Holdings in Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX)

Lester Murray Antman dba SimplyRich increased its stake in Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX) by 7.4% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 2,103 shares of the medical research company’s stock after acquiring an additional 144 shares during the quarter. Lester Murray Antman dba SimplyRich’s holdings in Quest Diagnostics were worth $317,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Versant Capital Management Inc raised its holdings in Quest Diagnostics by 340.4% during the 4th quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 251 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $38,000 after purchasing an additional 194 shares during the last quarter. First Financial Corp IN acquired a new stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics during the fourth quarter worth $38,000. Global Trust Asset Management LLC bought a new position in Quest Diagnostics during the fourth quarter worth $49,000. Sentry Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in Quest Diagnostics in the third quarter valued at $82,000. Finally, Board of the Pension Protection Fund bought a new stake in Quest Diagnostics during the fourth quarter valued at $91,000. 88.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Quest Diagnostics Stock Up 1.0 %

Shares of NYSE DGX opened at $166.82 on Wednesday. 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 has a 50-day moving average price of $155.51 and a 200-day moving average price of $154.49. The stock has a market capitalization of $18.62 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.69, a P/E/G ratio of 2.04 and a beta of 0.91. Quest Diagnostics Incorporated has a 1 year low of $123.30 and a 1 year high of $168.17.

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX) last released its quarterly 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 return on equity of 15.07% and a net margin of 8.80%. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Quest Diagnostics Incorporated will post 9.7 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Quest Diagnostics Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 21st. Investors of record on Monday, April 7th will be issued a dividend of $0.80 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, April 7th. This represents a $3.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.92%. This is an increase from Quest Diagnostics’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.75. Quest Diagnostics’s dividend payout ratio is 39.01%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Morgan Stanley raised Quest Diagnostics from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $145.00 to $172.00 in a research report on Tuesday, December 17th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on Quest Diagnostics from $173.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. Barclays boosted their price target on Quest Diagnostics from $168.00 to $175.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $185.00 price objective (up previously from $175.00) on shares of Quest Diagnostics in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. Finally, Leerink Partnrs upgraded shares of Quest Diagnostics from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Quest Diagnostics currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $177.69.

Insider Activity at Quest Diagnostics

In other news, SVP Mark E. Delaney sold 403 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $164.30, for a total value of $66,212.90. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 4,624 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $759,723.20. This represents a 8.02 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Vicky B. Gregg sold 1,250 shares of Quest Diagnostics stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $164.57, for a total value of $205,712.50. Following the sale, the director now owns 16,867 shares in the company, valued at $2,775,802.19. This trade represents a 6.90 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.79% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Quest Diagnostics 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.