Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD Buys 1,637,525 Shares of Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX)

Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD increased its stake in Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX - Free Report) by 42.5% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 5,490,278 shares of the medical research company's stock after purchasing an additional 1,637,525 shares during the period. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD owned approximately 4.92% of Quest Diagnostics worth $828,265,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of DGX. Sierra Ocean LLC acquired a new stake in Quest Diagnostics in the fourth quarter valued at about $33,000. First Financial Corp IN bought a new position in Quest Diagnostics in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $38,000. Versant Capital Management Inc boosted its position in 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. FPC Investment Advisory Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Quest Diagnostics during the fourth quarter worth $45,000. Finally, Global Trust Asset Management LLC bought a new position in Quest Diagnostics in the fourth quarter valued at about $49,000. 88.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at Quest Diagnostics

In related news, SVP Michael E. Prevoznik sold 604 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $170.99, for a total transaction of $103,277.96. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 39,845 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $6,813,096.55. This represents a 1.49 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Mark E. Delaney sold 403 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $164.30, for a total transaction of $66,212.90. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 4,624 shares in the company, valued at $759,723.20. This represents a 8.02 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 55,903 shares of company stock worth $9,460,221. Corporate insiders own 8.16% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Barclays raised their price target on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $175.00 to $185.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Wednesday. Redburn Atlantic assumed coverage on shares of Quest Diagnostics in a research note on Wednesday, April 2nd. They issued a "buy" rating and a $195.00 price objective on the stock. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Quest Diagnostics from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Mizuho increased their price target on Quest Diagnostics from $178.00 to $189.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 9th. Finally, Redburn Partners set a $195.00 price objective on Quest Diagnostics in a research note on Wednesday, April 2nd. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Quest Diagnostics currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $183.73.

Quest Diagnostics Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE DGX traded down $2.12 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $173.75. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,033,426 shares, compared to its average volume of 965,328. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.82, a current ratio of 1.10 and a quick ratio of 1.02. The stock has a market capitalization of $19.39 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.59, a PEG ratio of 2.16 and a beta of 0.78. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $168.96 and a 200-day moving average price of $160.98. Quest Diagnostics Incorporated has a 12-month low of $134.50 and a 12-month high of $178.87.

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 22nd. The medical research company reported $2.21 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.15 by $0.06. The business had revenue of $2.65 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.63 billion. Quest Diagnostics had a net margin of 8.80% and a return on equity of 15.07%. As a group, equities analysts predict that Quest Diagnostics Incorporated will post 9.7 earnings per share for the current year.

Quest Diagnostics Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 21st. Investors of record on Monday, April 7th were issued a $0.80 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, April 7th. This is an increase from Quest Diagnostics's previous quarterly dividend of $0.75. This represents a $3.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.84%. Quest Diagnostics's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 40.46%.

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.