Chevy Chase Trust Holdings LLC Buys 11,496 Shares of Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX)

Chevy Chase Trust Holdings LLC increased its stake in Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX) by 14.6% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 89,967 shares of the medical research company’s stock after purchasing an additional 11,496 shares during the period. Chevy Chase Trust Holdings LLC’s holdings in Quest Diagnostics were worth $13,967,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of DGX. Mizuho Securities USA LLC increased its position in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 5,168.5% in the third quarter. Mizuho Securities USA LLC now owns 451,403 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $70,080,000 after purchasing an additional 442,835 shares during the last quarter. Van Lanschot Kempen Investment Management N.V. bought a new position in shares of Quest Diagnostics in the second quarter worth approximately $48,783,000. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC increased its position in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 601.7% in the second quarter. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC now owns 277,561 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $37,993,000 after purchasing an additional 238,007 shares during the last quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. increased its position in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 222.0% in the second quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. now owns 299,740 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $41,028,000 after purchasing an additional 206,640 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA bought a new position in shares of Quest Diagnostics in the second quarter worth approximately $22,049,000. 88.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Quest Diagnostics Stock Performance

NYSE:DGX opened at $160.23 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $17.88 billion, a PE ratio of 21.54, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.79 and a beta of 0.89. Quest Diagnostics Incorporated has a fifty-two week low of $123.04 and a fifty-two week high of $165.32. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.83, a quick ratio of 1.17 and a current ratio of 1.25. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $156.10 and a 200-day moving average price of $149.61.

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The medical research company reported $2.30 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.26 by $0.04. Quest Diagnostics had a return on equity of 15.25% and a net margin of 8.82%. The company had revenue of $2.49 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.43 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $2.22 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 8.5% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts predict that Quest Diagnostics Incorporated will post 8.9 earnings per share for the current year.

Quest Diagnostics Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 29th. Investors of record on Tuesday, January 14th will be paid a $0.75 dividend. This represents a $3.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.87%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, January 14th. Quest Diagnostics’s payout ratio is 40.32%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Piper Sandler upped their price objective on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $150.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, October 28th. Citigroup upped their target price on Quest Diagnostics from $165.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Evercore ISI initiated coverage on Quest Diagnostics in a research note on Wednesday, August 28th. They issued an “in-line” rating and a $165.00 target price for the company. Barclays upped their target price on Quest Diagnostics from $154.00 to $168.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Finally, UBS Group upped their target price on Quest Diagnostics from $165.00 to $166.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Quest Diagnostics presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $164.58.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, SVP Karthik Kuppusamy sold 1,775 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, October 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $156.92, for a total value of $278,533.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 9,734 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,527,459.28. This trade represents a 15.42 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CAO Michael J. Deppe sold 18,755 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $154.05, for a total value of $2,889,207.75. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 34,941 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,382,661.05. The trade was a 34.93 % decrease in their position. 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.