Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX) Stock Price Expected to Rise, Barclays Analyst Says

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX - Get Free Report) had its price target boosted by analysts at Barclays from $168.00 to $175.00 in a note issued to investors on Friday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has an "equal weight" rating on the medical research company's stock. Barclays's price target indicates a potential upside of 6.73% from the stock's current price.

DGX has been the topic of a number of other research reports. UBS Group raised their price objective on Quest Diagnostics from $165.00 to $166.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Jefferies Financial Group restated a "buy" rating and issued a $185.00 target price (up previously from $175.00) on shares of Quest Diagnostics in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. Robert W. Baird upgraded Quest Diagnostics from a "neutral" rating to an "outperform" rating and boosted their price target for the company from $157.00 to $182.00 in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Bank of America raised their price objective on Quest Diagnostics from $179.00 to $182.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, December 13th. Finally, Leerink Partnrs upgraded shares of Quest Diagnostics from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Monday, January 6th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, Quest Diagnostics presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $172.69.

Quest Diagnostics Stock Performance

Quest Diagnostics stock opened at $163.97 on Friday. The company's 50-day moving average price is $155.42 and its 200-day moving average price is $153.43. The company has a quick ratio of 1.17, a current ratio of 1.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.83. Quest Diagnostics has a twelve month low of $123.04 and a twelve month high of $167.08. The company has a market cap of $18.30 billion, a PE ratio of 22.04, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.43 and a beta of 0.90.

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The medical research company reported $2.23 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.19 by $0.04. Quest Diagnostics had a net margin of 8.82% and a return on equity of 15.25%. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Quest Diagnostics will post 8.9 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Quest Diagnostics

In related news, CAO Michael J. Deppe sold 18,755 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $154.05, for a total value of $2,889,207.75. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 34,941 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $5,382,661.05. The trade was a 34.93 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.79% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Quest Diagnostics

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Sierra Ocean LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Versant Capital Management Inc grew 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 worth $38,000 after acquiring an additional 194 shares during the period. First Financial Corp IN acquired a new stake in Quest Diagnostics during the fourth quarter worth $38,000. Sunbelt Securities Inc. purchased a new stake in Quest Diagnostics in the second quarter valued at $40,000. Finally, Global Trust Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Quest Diagnostics in the 4th quarter valued at $49,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 88.06% of the company's stock.

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.

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