Equities Analysts Offer Predictions for DGX Q1 Earnings

Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX) – Analysts at Leerink Partnrs dropped their Q1 2025 EPS estimates for Quest Diagnostics in a report issued on Wednesday, March 19th. Leerink Partnrs analyst M. Cherny now forecasts that the medical research company will post earnings per share of $2.11 for the quarter, down from their prior estimate of $2.21. Leerink Partnrs currently has a “Strong-Buy” rating on the stock. The consensus estimate for Quest Diagnostics’ current full-year earnings is $9.70 per share. Leerink Partnrs also issued estimates for Quest Diagnostics’ Q3 2025 earnings at $2.49 EPS and Q4 2025 earnings at $2.46 EPS.

DGX has been the topic of several other reports. Bank of America lifted their price target on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $179.00 to $182.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, December 13th. Mizuho upped their target price on Quest Diagnostics from $177.00 to $178.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Robert W. Baird raised their price target on Quest Diagnostics from $190.00 to $191.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, March 20th. Citigroup lowered Quest Diagnostics from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $185.00 price target on the stock. in a research note on Tuesday, March 4th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $185.00 price objective (up from $175.00) on shares of Quest Diagnostics in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $178.38.

Quest Diagnostics Stock Performance

Shares of Quest Diagnostics stock opened at $165.49 on Monday. Quest Diagnostics has a one year low of $125.42 and a one year high of $178.87. The company has a market capitalization of $18.37 billion, a PE ratio of 21.52, a P/E/G ratio of 2.16 and a beta of 0.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.82, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a current ratio of 1.10. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $165.70 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $158.82.

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX) last announced 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%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Sierra Ocean LLC purchased a new position in shares of Quest Diagnostics in the 4th quarter valued at about $33,000. Versant Capital Management Inc increased its position in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 340.4% in the fourth quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 251 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $38,000 after buying an additional 194 shares in the last quarter. First Financial Corp IN acquired a new position in shares of Quest Diagnostics during the 4th quarter worth approximately $38,000. FPC Investment Advisory Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Quest Diagnostics during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $45,000. Finally, Global Trust Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in Quest Diagnostics in the 4th quarter valued at $49,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 88.06% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Vicky B. Gregg sold 1,250 shares of Quest Diagnostics stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $164.57, for a total transaction of $205,712.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 16,867 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,775,802.19. This trade represents a 6.90 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Catherine T. Doherty sold 535 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $169.71, for a total value of $90,794.85. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 71,356 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,109,826.76. This represents a 0.74 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 14,157 shares of company stock valued at $2,423,755 in the last quarter. 0.79% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Quest Diagnostics Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 21st. Shareholders of record on Monday, April 7th will be paid a dividend of $0.80 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, April 7th. This represents a $3.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.93%. This is a positive change from Quest Diagnostics’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.75. Quest Diagnostics’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 41.61%.

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.