Te Ahumairangi Investment Management Ltd Sells 6,810 Shares of Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX)

Te Ahumairangi Investment Management Ltd decreased its stake in Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX - Free Report) by 13.6% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 43,194 shares of the medical research company's stock after selling 6,810 shares during the period. Quest Diagnostics accounts for about 1.4% of Te Ahumairangi Investment Management Ltd's holdings, making the stock its 20th biggest position. Te Ahumairangi Investment Management Ltd's holdings in Quest Diagnostics were worth $6,516,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Sierra Ocean LLC purchased a new stake in Quest Diagnostics in the 4th quarter worth about $33,000. Versant Capital Management Inc increased its stake in shares of 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 purchasing an additional 194 shares in the last quarter. First Financial Corp IN purchased a new position in shares of Quest Diagnostics in the fourth quarter worth about $38,000. FPC Investment Advisory Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $45,000. Finally, Global Trust Asset Management LLC bought a new position in Quest Diagnostics in the 4th quarter worth approximately $49,000. Institutional investors own 88.06% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on DGX shares. Barclays boosted their target price on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $168.00 to $175.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Morgan Stanley upgraded Quest Diagnostics from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $145.00 to $172.00 in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. Mizuho raised their target price on Quest Diagnostics from $177.00 to $178.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Robert W. Baird increased their price target on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $190.00 to $191.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, March 20th. Finally, UBS Group boosted their price objective on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $166.00 to $170.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $179.57.

Quest Diagnostics Price Performance

NYSE DGX traded down $6.55 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $164.08. 2,505,194 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 924,270. 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 50 day simple moving average of $168.21 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $159.52. Quest Diagnostics Incorporated has a 1 year low of $125.42 and a 1 year high of $178.87. The company has a market cap of $18.21 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.34, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.16 and a beta of 0.78.

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The medical research company reported $2.23 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.19 by $0.04. Quest Diagnostics had a return on equity of 15.07% and a net margin of 8.80%. On average, analysts predict that Quest Diagnostics Incorporated will post 9.7 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Quest Diagnostics Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 21st. Investors of record on Monday, April 7th will be issued a dividend of $0.80 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, April 7th. This represents a $3.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.95%. This is a positive change from Quest Diagnostics's previous quarterly dividend of $0.75. Quest Diagnostics's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 41.61%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, SVP Mark E. Delaney sold 403 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $164.30, for a total value of $66,212.90. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 4,624 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $759,723.20. The trade was a 8.02 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Catherine T. Doherty sold 5,370 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $174.13, for a total value of $935,078.10. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 68,068 shares of the company's stock, valued at $11,852,680.84. This represents a 7.31 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 55,903 shares of company stock worth $9,460,221 in the last 90 days. 0.79% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.