National Pension Service Has $32.97 Million Stake in Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX)

National Pension Service trimmed its stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX - Free Report) by 4.1% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 218,569 shares of the medical research company's stock after selling 9,262 shares during the quarter. National Pension Service owned about 0.20% of Quest Diagnostics worth $32,973,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of DGX. Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its stake in Quest Diagnostics by 14.8% in the 4th quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 881,764 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $133,023,000 after buying an additional 113,956 shares during the last quarter. Addison Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 10.6% in the fourth quarter. Addison Advisors LLC now owns 1,300 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $196,000 after purchasing an additional 125 shares during the last quarter. BankPlus Trust Department bought a new position in shares of Quest Diagnostics during the fourth quarter worth approximately $1,596,000. IFP Advisors Inc lifted its holdings in Quest Diagnostics by 1,544.4% during the 4th quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 15,523 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $2,346,000 after purchasing an additional 14,579 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund boosted its stake in Quest Diagnostics by 3.3% in the 4th quarter. Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund now owns 25,020 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $3,775,000 after purchasing an additional 800 shares during the period. 88.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Quest Diagnostics news, SVP Mark E. Delaney sold 403 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $164.30, for a total value of $66,212.90. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 4,624 shares in the company, valued at approximately $759,723.20. This represents a 8.02 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, SVP Michael E. Prevoznik sold 528 shares of Quest Diagnostics stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $172.61, for a total transaction of $91,138.08. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 39,031 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,737,140.91. This trade represents a 1.33 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 4,144 shares of company stock valued at $699,367 in the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.79% of the company's stock.

Quest Diagnostics Price Performance

Shares of DGX stock traded down $1.29 on Tuesday, reaching $175.66. The company had a trading volume of 755,129 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,054,745. The business's 50-day moving average is $160.11 and its 200 day moving average is $157.02. Quest Diagnostics Incorporated has a one year low of $124.25 and a one year high of $178.09. The company has a quick ratio of 1.02, a current ratio of 1.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.82. The stock has a market capitalization of $19.49 billion, a PE ratio of 22.83, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.16 and a beta of 0.91.

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The medical research company reported $2.23 EPS for the quarter, beating 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%. Equities research analysts forecast that Quest Diagnostics Incorporated will post 9.7 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Quest Diagnostics Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 21st. Investors of record on Monday, April 7th will be given 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 yield of 1.82%. This is a positive change from Quest Diagnostics's previous quarterly dividend of $0.75. Quest Diagnostics's payout ratio is currently 41.61%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have weighed in on the company. UBS Group increased their price objective on Quest Diagnostics from $166.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Morgan Stanley upgraded shares of Quest Diagnostics from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $145.00 to $172.00 in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. Jefferies Financial Group restated a "buy" rating and set a $185.00 target price (up previously from $175.00) on shares of Quest Diagnostics in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. Barclays lifted their price target on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $168.00 to $175.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Leerink Partnrs upgraded Quest Diagnostics from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Quest Diagnostics presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $178.23.

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.