Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX) Stock Position Raised by Occidental Asset Management LLC

Occidental Asset Management LLC grew its stake in Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX - Free Report) by 8.0% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 24,339 shares of the medical research company's stock after purchasing an additional 1,799 shares during the quarter. Occidental Asset Management LLC's holdings in Quest Diagnostics were worth $3,672,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of DGX. Versant Capital Management Inc raised its stake in Quest Diagnostics by 340.4% during 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 bought a new stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $38,000. Sunbelt Securities Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $40,000. Quarry LP bought a new position in Quest Diagnostics during the second quarter worth $74,000. Finally, Sentry Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in Quest Diagnostics in the third quarter worth $82,000. Institutional investors own 88.06% of the company's stock.

Quest Diagnostics Price Performance

DGX traded up $0.30 on Friday, reaching $151.96. The company had a trading volume of 382,714 shares, compared to its average volume of 708,052. Quest Diagnostics Incorporated has a one year low of $123.04 and a one year high of $165.32. The company has a market capitalization of $16.96 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.44, a PEG ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 0.90. The company has a fifty day moving average of $156.56 and a 200-day moving average of $152.47. 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 (NYSE:DGX - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 22nd. The medical research company reported $2.30 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.26 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $2.49 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.43 billion. Quest Diagnostics had a net margin of 8.82% and a return on equity of 15.25%. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 8.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $2.22 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Quest Diagnostics Incorporated will post 8.9 earnings per share for the current year.

Quest Diagnostics Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 29th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, January 14th will be given a $0.75 dividend. This represents a $3.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.97%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, January 14th. Quest Diagnostics's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 40.32%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Quest Diagnostics

In related news, SVP Karthik Kuppusamy sold 1,775 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, October 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $156.92, for a total transaction of $278,533.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 9,734 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,527,459.28. This represents a 15.42 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CAO Michael J. Deppe sold 18,755 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $154.05, for a total transaction of $2,889,207.75. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 34,941 shares of the company's stock, valued at $5,382,661.05. The trade was a 34.93 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.79% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have weighed in on DGX. Baird R W raised shares of Quest Diagnostics from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Mizuho raised their target price on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $160.00 to $174.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, October 24th. UBS Group lifted their target price on Quest Diagnostics from $165.00 to $166.00 and gave the company a "neutral" 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 stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Monday, October 28th. Finally, Bank of America boosted their price objective on Quest Diagnostics from $179.00 to $182.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, December 13th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $172.15.

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.