Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX) Stock Rating Upgraded by Citigroup

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX) was upgraded by research analysts at Citigroup from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note issued to investors on Wednesday, Marketbeat reports. The firm currently has a $165.00 price target on the medical research company’s stock, up from their prior price target of $145.00. Citigroup’s target price indicates a potential upside of 14.98% from the stock’s current price.

DGX has been the topic of a number of other reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on Quest Diagnostics from $152.00 to $155.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 30th. Barclays boosted their target price on Quest Diagnostics from $138.00 to $144.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 25th. Truist Financial boosted their target price on Quest Diagnostics from $145.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 24th. StockNews.com downgraded Quest Diagnostics from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 26th. Finally, Mizuho upped their price objective on Quest Diagnostics from $150.00 to $155.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 24th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Quest Diagnostics currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $148.69.

Quest Diagnostics Trading Up 2.2 %

Shares of DGX stock opened at $143.50 on Wednesday. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $139.71 and its 200 day moving average price is $133.99. Quest Diagnostics has a 1-year low of $119.59 and a 1-year high of $145.62. The firm has a market capitalization of $15.94 billion, a PE ratio of 19.31, a P/E/G ratio of 3.01 and a beta of 0.89. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59, a current ratio of 0.97 and a quick ratio of 0.89.

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 23rd. The medical research company reported $2.04 earnings per share 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 for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.29 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $2.04 earnings per share. Quest Diagnostics’s quarterly revenue was up 1.7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Quest Diagnostics will post 8.79 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other Quest Diagnostics news, SVP Karthik Kuppusamy sold 1,760 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $140.00, for a total transaction of $246,400.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 13,435 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,880,900. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.79% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Altshuler Shaham Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Quest Diagnostics in the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. VisionPoint Advisory Group LLC grew its position in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 100.0% in the 3rd quarter. VisionPoint Advisory Group LLC now owns 218 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 109 shares in the last quarter. BKM Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Quest Diagnostics in the 4th quarter worth approximately $29,000. Spartan Planning & Wealth Management acquired a new position in Quest Diagnostics during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Finally, Alaska Permanent Fund Corp boosted its position in Quest Diagnostics by 79.3% during the 4th quarter. Alaska Permanent Fund Corp now owns 242 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 107 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 88.06% of the company’s stock.

About Quest Diagnostics

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.