Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX) Shares Sold by Wellington Management Group LLP

Wellington Management Group LLP lowered its holdings in Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX - Free Report) by 8.5% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 2,333,448 shares of the medical research company's stock after selling 217,344 shares during the quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP owned approximately 2.09% of Quest Diagnostics worth $362,268,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Mizuho Securities USA LLC boosted its position in Quest Diagnostics by 5,168.5% during the third quarter. Mizuho Securities USA LLC now owns 451,403 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $70,080,000 after purchasing an additional 442,835 shares in the last quarter. Van Lanschot Kempen Investment Management N.V. bought a new stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics in the 2nd quarter valued at about $48,783,000. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC grew its position in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 601.7% in the 2nd quarter. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC now owns 277,561 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $37,993,000 after buying an additional 238,007 shares during the last quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. raised its stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 222.0% during the 2nd quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. now owns 299,740 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $41,028,000 after acquiring an additional 206,640 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA purchased a new stake in Quest Diagnostics during the second quarter valued at approximately $22,049,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 88.06% of the company's stock.

Quest Diagnostics Stock Performance

NYSE DGX traded down $1.17 on Friday, hitting $157.35. 951,373 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 835,314. The firm's 50-day moving average price is $156.24 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $149.81. The firm has a market capitalization of $17.56 billion, a PE ratio of 21.15, a P/E/G ratio of 2.77 and a beta of 0.89. The company has a current ratio of 1.25, a quick ratio of 1.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.83. Quest Diagnostics Incorporated has a 1-year low of $123.04 and a 1-year high of $165.32.

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The medical research company reported $2.30 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.26 by $0.04. Quest Diagnostics had a net margin of 8.82% and a return on equity of 15.25%. The company had revenue of $2.49 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.43 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $2.22 earnings per share. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 8.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts expect that Quest Diagnostics Incorporated will post 8.9 EPS for the current year.

Quest Diagnostics Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 29th. Investors of record on Tuesday, January 14th will be given a dividend of $0.75 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, January 14th. This represents a $3.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.91%. Quest Diagnostics's dividend payout ratio is presently 40.32%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on DGX shares. Evercore ISI began coverage on Quest Diagnostics in a research report on Wednesday, August 28th. They set an "in-line" rating and a $165.00 price target on the stock. UBS Group upped their target price on Quest Diagnostics from $165.00 to $166.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Piper Sandler raised their price target on Quest Diagnostics from $150.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Monday, October 28th. Baird R W upgraded shares of Quest Diagnostics from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Finally, Mizuho increased their price objective on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $160.00 to $174.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $164.58.

Insider Buying and Selling at Quest Diagnostics

In other Quest Diagnostics news, SVP Karthik Kuppusamy sold 1,775 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, October 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $156.92, for a total value of $278,533.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 9,734 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,527,459.28. This trade represents a 15.42 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Michael J. Deppe sold 18,755 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred 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 $5,382,661.05. This trade represents a 34.93 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.79% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.