Kingsview Wealth Management LLC Has $229,000 Stock Position in Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX)

Kingsview Wealth Management LLC lessened its holdings in Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX) by 10.6% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 1,661 shares of the medical research company’s stock after selling 196 shares during the quarter. Kingsview Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Quest Diagnostics were worth $229,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Raymond James & Associates raised its stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 103.3% in the fourth quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 148,251 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $20,441,000 after purchasing an additional 75,315 shares during the last quarter. CHURCHILL MANAGEMENT Corp purchased a new stake in Quest Diagnostics in the 4th quarter valued at $1,483,000. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its stake in Quest Diagnostics by 14.6% during the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 2,613,793 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $318,517,000 after acquiring an additional 333,947 shares in the last quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. boosted its holdings in Quest Diagnostics by 201.5% during the 4th quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 31,912 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $4,400,000 after acquiring an additional 21,327 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Strs Ohio raised its holdings in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 7.6% in the fourth quarter. Strs Ohio now owns 16,270 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $2,243,000 after purchasing an additional 1,150 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 88.06% of the company’s stock.

Quest Diagnostics Stock Down 1.0 %

DGX opened at $141.86 on Thursday. Quest Diagnostics Incorporated has a 12 month low of $119.59 and a 12 month high of $145.62. The company has a market cap of $15.76 billion, a PE ratio of 19.09, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.13 and a beta of 0.88. The company has a current ratio of 0.97, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59. The company has a 50 day moving average of $133.82 and a 200 day moving average of $132.93.

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 23rd. The medical research company reported $2.04 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.86 by $0.18. Quest Diagnostics had a return on equity of 15.52% and a net margin of 9.11%. The firm had revenue of $2.37 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.29 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.04 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Quest Diagnostics Incorporated will post 8.78 EPS for the current year.

Quest Diagnostics Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, July 22nd. Stockholders of record on Monday, July 8th will be issued a $0.75 dividend. This represents a $3.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.11%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, July 8th. Quest Diagnostics’s payout ratio is 38.22%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on DGX shares. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Quest Diagnostics from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, May 3rd. Leerink Partnrs reaffirmed a “market perform” rating on shares of Quest Diagnostics in a research report on Monday, February 26th. Jefferies Financial Group raised Quest Diagnostics from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price objective for the stock from $140.00 to $155.00 in a research report on Wednesday, February 7th. TheStreet lowered Quest Diagnostics from a “b-” rating to a “c” rating in a research report on Monday, February 5th. Finally, Barclays boosted their price target on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $138.00 to $144.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, April 25th. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $146.17.

Insider Activity

In related news, SVP Michael E. Prevoznik sold 5,611 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $125.88, for a total transaction of $706,312.68. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 38,478 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,843,610.64. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In related news, SVP Michael E. Prevoznik sold 5,611 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $125.88, for a total transaction of $706,312.68. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 38,478 shares in the company, valued at $4,843,610.64. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, SVP Karthik Kuppusamy sold 1,760 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $140.00, for a total value of $246,400.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 13,435 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,880,900. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 15,428 shares of company stock worth $1,972,662. 0.79% of the stock is owned by company 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.