Tredje AP fonden Sells 8,746 Shares of Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX)

Tredje AP fonden cut its holdings in shares of Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX - Free Report) by 50.0% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 8,747 shares of the medical research company's stock after selling 8,746 shares during the period. Tredje AP fonden's holdings in Quest Diagnostics were worth $1,320,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Assetmark Inc. lifted its holdings in Quest Diagnostics by 2.7% in the third quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 6,123 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $951,000 after acquiring an additional 162 shares during the period. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC bought a new position in Quest Diagnostics in the third quarter valued at about $224,000. Prime Capital Investment Advisors LLC bought a new position in Quest Diagnostics in the third quarter valued at about $205,000. MQS Management LLC bought a new position in Quest Diagnostics in the third quarter valued at about $207,000. Finally, Pinnacle Financial Partners Inc bought a new position in Quest Diagnostics in the third quarter valued at about $209,000. 88.06% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Quest Diagnostics

In related news, EVP Catherine T. Doherty sold 5,370 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $174.13, for a total transaction of $935,078.10. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 68,068 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $11,852,680.84. This trade represents a 7.31 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, SVP Mark E. Delaney sold 403 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $164.30, for a total value of $66,212.90. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 4,624 shares of the company's stock, 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 90 days, insiders sold 9,514 shares of company stock worth $1,634,445. 0.79% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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Quest Diagnostics Price Performance

NYSE DGX traded down $4.51 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $167.94. 1,596,508 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 872,860. The company has a market capitalization of $18.64 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.84, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.16 and a beta of 0.92. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $164.35 and a 200-day simple moving average of $158.41. The company has a quick ratio of 1.02, a current ratio of 1.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.82. Quest Diagnostics Incorporated has a 12-month low of $125.42 and a 12-month high of $178.87.

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The medical research company reported $2.23 EPS 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%. As a group, analysts predict that Quest Diagnostics Incorporated will post 9.7 EPS for the current year.

Quest Diagnostics Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 21st. Stockholders of record on Monday, April 7th will be issued a $0.80 dividend. This is a boost from Quest Diagnostics's previous quarterly dividend of $0.75. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, April 7th. This represents a $3.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.91%. Quest Diagnostics's payout ratio is 41.61%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

DGX has been the topic of several recent research reports. Barclays raised their price objective on Quest Diagnostics from $168.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. UBS Group raised their price objective on Quest Diagnostics from $166.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Robert W. Baird set a $189.00 price objective on Quest Diagnostics in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Bank of America increased their target price on Quest Diagnostics from $179.00 to $182.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, December 13th. Finally, Morgan Stanley upgraded Quest Diagnostics from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and increased their target price for the stock from $145.00 to $172.00 in a research report on Tuesday, December 17th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $178.23.

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.