Azzad Asset Management Inc. ADV Buys 66 Shares of Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX)

Azzad Asset Management Inc. ADV grew its stake in Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX) by 1.7% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 3,922 shares of the medical research company’s stock after purchasing an additional 66 shares during the period. Azzad Asset Management Inc. ADV’s holdings in Quest Diagnostics were worth $664,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of DGX. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC grew its stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics by 57.8% in the 1st quarter. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC now owns 183 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 67 shares during the period. Sierra Ocean LLC bought a new stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $33,000. NBC Securities Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Quest Diagnostics in the 1st quarter worth approximately $35,000. FPC Investment Advisory Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Quest Diagnostics in the 4th quarter worth approximately $45,000. Finally, SBI Securities Co. Ltd. acquired a new position in shares of Quest Diagnostics in the 4th quarter worth approximately $54,000. 88.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, SVP Karthik Kuppusamy sold 2,555 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $170.00, for a total transaction of $434,350.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 10,575 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,797,750. This trade represents a 19.46% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Mark E. Delaney sold 874 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $175.72, for a total transaction of $153,579.28. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 8,372 shares in the company, valued at $1,471,127.84. This represents a 9.45% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 42,620 shares of company stock worth $7,190,045 over the last three months. Insiders own 8.16% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

DGX has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Truist Financial boosted their target price on Quest Diagnostics from $182.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Evercore ISI boosted their target price on Quest Diagnostics from $175.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Redburn Atlantic began coverage on Quest Diagnostics in a report on Wednesday, April 2nd. They set a “buy” rating and a $195.00 price objective on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on Quest Diagnostics from $180.00 to $190.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 6th. Finally, Robert W. Baird increased their target price on Quest Diagnostics from $191.00 to $194.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Quest Diagnostics presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $185.73.

Quest Diagnostics Trading Up 0.6%

Shares of NYSE:DGX opened at $180.04 on Monday. Quest Diagnostics Incorporated has a 52-week low of $135.47 and a 52-week high of $181.91. The company has a market capitalization of $20.10 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.41, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.16 and a beta of 0.49. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $172.77 and a 200 day simple moving average of $165.69. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.82, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a current ratio of 1.10.

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, April 22nd. The medical research company reported $2.21 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.15 by $0.06. The business had revenue of $2.65 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.63 billion. Quest Diagnostics had a net margin of 8.80% and a return on equity of 15.07%. Sell-side analysts forecast that Quest Diagnostics Incorporated will post 9.7 earnings per share for the current year.

Quest Diagnostics Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, July 21st. Shareholders of record on Monday, July 7th will be given a dividend of $0.80 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, July 7th. This represents a $3.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.78%. Quest Diagnostics’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 40.46%.

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.