Parsons Capital Management Inc. RI Reduces Holdings in Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX)

Parsons Capital Management Inc. RI cut its holdings in Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX) by 2.3% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 9,398 shares of the medical research company’s stock after selling 225 shares during the period. Parsons Capital Management Inc. RI’s holdings in Quest Diagnostics were worth $1,418,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of DGX. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans raised its holdings in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 2.6% in the second quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 9,571 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $1,310,000 after acquiring an additional 244 shares during the last quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board boosted its stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 68.8% during the 2nd quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 4,315 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $591,000 after purchasing an additional 1,759 shares during the last quarter. AXA S.A. grew its holdings in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 564.7% during the second quarter. AXA S.A. now owns 14,603 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $1,999,000 after buying an additional 12,406 shares in the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 18.6% in the second quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 147,469 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $20,186,000 after buying an additional 23,150 shares during the last quarter. Finally, MBB Public Markets I LLC purchased a new position in shares of Quest Diagnostics during the second quarter valued at approximately $1,061,000. 88.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have weighed in on DGX shares. Morgan Stanley upgraded Quest Diagnostics from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and boosted their price target for the company from $145.00 to $172.00 in a report on Tuesday, December 17th. Citigroup increased their target price on Quest Diagnostics from $165.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Bank of America lifted their price target on Quest Diagnostics from $179.00 to $182.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, December 13th. Truist Financial increased their price objective on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $158.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, October 7th. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded shares of Quest Diagnostics from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $172.15.

Quest Diagnostics Stock Performance

NYSE:DGX opened at $159.94 on Tuesday. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $155.66 and its 200 day simple moving average is $153.21. The company has a current ratio of 1.25, a quick ratio of 1.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.83. Quest Diagnostics Incorporated has a twelve month low of $123.04 and a twelve month high of $165.32. The firm has a market capitalization of $17.85 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.50, a PEG ratio of 2.36 and a beta of 0.90.

Quest Diagnostics Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 29th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, January 14th will be given a $0.75 dividend. This represents a $3.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.88%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, January 14th. Quest Diagnostics’s payout ratio is 40.32%.

Insider Activity

In other Quest Diagnostics news, CAO Michael J. Deppe sold 18,755 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 6th. The shares were 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 owns 34,941 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,382,661.05. This trade represents a 34.93 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.79% of the company’s stock.

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.