Hager Investment Management Services LLC Takes $309,000 Position in Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX)

Hager Investment Management Services LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 2,051 shares of the medical research company's stock, valued at approximately $309,000.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in DGX. Mizuho Securities USA LLC boosted its stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 5,168.5% during the 3rd 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 period. BNP Paribas Financial Markets boosted its holdings in Quest Diagnostics by 25.4% during the 3rd quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 747,298 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $116,018,000 after acquiring an additional 151,365 shares during the period. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. grew its position in Quest Diagnostics by 535.3% in the 4th quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 128,440 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $19,376,000 after acquiring an additional 108,224 shares during the last quarter. Barclays PLC increased its stake in Quest Diagnostics by 35.9% in the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 298,922 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $46,407,000 after purchasing an additional 78,980 shares during the period. Finally, State Street Corp lifted its position in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 1.4% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 5,263,231 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $817,117,000 after purchasing an additional 70,578 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 88.06% of the company's stock.

Quest Diagnostics Stock Up 0.0 %

Shares of NYSE:DGX traded up $0.02 during trading on Friday, reaching $162.66. The stock had a trading volume of 499,450 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,053,881. The company has a current ratio of 1.10, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.82. The company has a market capitalization of $18.15 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.15, a PEG ratio of 2.04 and a beta of 0.91. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $155.44 and its 200 day simple moving average is $154.17. Quest Diagnostics Incorporated has a one year low of $123.30 and a one year high of $167.08.

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The medical research company reported $2.23 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.19 by $0.04. Quest Diagnostics had a net margin of 8.80% and a return on equity of 15.07%. As a group, research analysts expect that Quest Diagnostics Incorporated will post 9.7 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Quest Diagnostics Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 21st. Shareholders of record on Monday, April 7th will be issued a $0.80 dividend. This represents a $3.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.97%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, April 7th. This is an increase from Quest Diagnostics's previous quarterly dividend of $0.75. Quest Diagnostics's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 39.01%.

Insider Transactions at Quest Diagnostics

In related news, Director Vicky B. Gregg sold 1,250 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $164.57, for a total value of $205,712.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 16,867 shares in the company, valued at $2,775,802.19. The trade was a 6.90 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, SVP Mark E. Delaney sold 403 shares of Quest Diagnostics stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $164.30, for a total transaction 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. The trade was a 8.02 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.79% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have commented on DGX. Leerink Partnrs upgraded shares of Quest Diagnostics from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Jefferies Financial Group reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $185.00 price objective (up previously from $175.00) on shares of Quest Diagnostics in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. StockNews.com lowered Quest Diagnostics from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday. Baird R W raised Quest Diagnostics from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Finally, Leerink Partners upgraded Quest Diagnostics from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $169.00 to $174.00 in a report on Monday, January 6th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Quest Diagnostics currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $177.69.

About Quest Diagnostics

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.