Robert W. Baird Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX) Stock

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX - Get Free Report) had its target price lifted by research analysts at Robert W. Baird from $191.00 to $194.00 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has an "outperform" rating on the medical research company's stock. Robert W. Baird's price objective suggests a potential upside of 12.42% from the company's current price.

A number of other research analysts have also recently issued reports on DGX. Redburn Partners set a $195.00 price target on shares of Quest Diagnostics in a research report on Wednesday, April 2nd. UBS Group boosted their price target on Quest Diagnostics from $166.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Truist Financial lifted their price objective on Quest Diagnostics from $172.00 to $182.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on Quest Diagnostics from $173.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. Finally, Mizuho upped their price target on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $178.00 to $189.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 9th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $181.53.

Quest Diagnostics Price Performance

Shares of NYSE DGX opened at $172.56 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.82, a current ratio of 1.10 and a quick ratio of 1.02. Quest Diagnostics has a 1 year low of $133.11 and a 1 year high of $178.87. The company's 50-day moving average is $168.64 and its 200 day moving average is $160.52. The stock has a market capitalization of $19.26 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.44, a P/E/G ratio of 2.16 and a beta of 0.78.

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, April 22nd. The medical research company reported $2.21 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.15 by $0.06. Quest Diagnostics had a return on equity of 15.07% and a net margin of 8.80%. The firm had revenue of $2.65 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.63 billion. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Quest Diagnostics will post 9.7 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO J. E. Davis sold 39,191 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $168.46, for a total transaction of $6,602,115.86. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 127,623 shares in the company, valued at $21,499,370.58. This represents a 23.49 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, SVP Mark E. Delaney sold 403 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 5th. The shares were 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. Insiders sold a total of 55,903 shares of company stock valued at $9,460,221 over the last three months. 8.16% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in DGX. BankPlus Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics during the fourth quarter worth about $355,000. Van ECK Associates Corp boosted its stake in Quest Diagnostics by 980.3% in the 4th quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 24,198 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $3,650,000 after purchasing an additional 21,958 shares in the last quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. purchased a new stake in Quest Diagnostics during the 4th quarter worth approximately $54,000. Clean Yield Group increased its stake in Quest Diagnostics by 17.7% during the 4th quarter. Clean Yield Group now owns 26,428 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $3,987,000 after purchasing an additional 3,983 shares in the last quarter. Finally, SVB Wealth LLC purchased a new position in shares of Quest Diagnostics in the fourth quarter worth $10,345,000. 88.06% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Quest Diagnostics Company 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.

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