Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. Purchases 5,436 Shares of Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX)

Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. raised its position in Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX - Free Report) by 114.9% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 10,169 shares of the medical research company's stock after acquiring an additional 5,436 shares during the period. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc.'s holdings in Quest Diagnostics were worth $1,579,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. raised its stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 9.7% during the 1st quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 50,330 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $6,929,000 after purchasing an additional 4,464 shares in the last quarter. Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. raised its stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 45.6% during the 1st quarter. Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 3,294 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $438,000 after purchasing an additional 1,032 shares in the last quarter. Fidelis Capital Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics during the 1st quarter worth approximately $50,000. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 10.3% during the 1st quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 11,112 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $1,479,000 after purchasing an additional 1,042 shares in the last quarter. Finally, BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S raised its stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 10.2% during the 1st quarter. BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S now owns 2,910 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $387,000 after purchasing an additional 270 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 88.06% of the company's stock.

Quest Diagnostics Price Performance

Shares of DGX traded up $1.10 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $155.20. 804,068 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 918,315. The company has a market cap of $17.32 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.86, a P/E/G ratio of 2.68 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 $160.95. The company has a quick ratio of 1.17, a current ratio of 1.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.83. The firm's fifty day moving average is $153.48 and its 200 day moving average is $146.33.

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

Quest Diagnostics Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, October 21st. Investors of record on Friday, October 4th were paid a $0.75 dividend. This represents a $3.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.93%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, October 4th. Quest Diagnostics's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 40.32%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms recently weighed in on DGX. Robert W. Baird upgraded Quest Diagnostics from a "neutral" rating to an "outperform" rating and increased their price target for the company from $157.00 to $182.00 in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Evercore ISI began coverage on Quest Diagnostics in a research note on Wednesday, August 28th. They issued an "in-line" rating and a $165.00 price target on the stock. Citigroup increased their price target on Quest Diagnostics from $165.00 to $185.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Piper Sandler increased their price target on Quest Diagnostics from $150.00 to $165.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday, October 28th. Finally, Truist Financial upped their price objective on Quest Diagnostics from $158.00 to $165.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, October 7th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $164.58.

Insider Activity at Quest Diagnostics

In related news, SVP Karthik Kuppusamy sold 1,990 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $153.26, for a total value of $304,987.40. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 11,459 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,756,206.34. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. 0.79% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.