Aaron Wealth Advisors LLC Sells 4,045 Shares of Quest Diagnostics Incorporated $DGX

Aaron Wealth Advisors LLC decreased its position in Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX) by 57.5% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,995 shares of the medical research company’s stock after selling 4,045 shares during the period. Aaron Wealth Advisors LLC’s holdings in Quest Diagnostics were worth $587,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Quattro Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Quest Diagnostics during the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. JFS Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its position in Quest Diagnostics by 114.3% in the fourth quarter. JFS Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 150 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 80 shares during the period. Sittner & Nelson LLC bought a new position in Quest Diagnostics in the fourth quarter worth $29,000. DV Equities LLC acquired a new stake in Quest Diagnostics during the fourth quarter worth $27,000. Finally, Harbor Investment Advisory LLC boosted its stake in Quest Diagnostics by 113.7% during the fourth quarter. Harbor Investment Advisory LLC now owns 156 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 83 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 88.06% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, SVP Karthik Kuppusamy sold 8,147 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $200.00, for a total transaction of $1,629,400.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 13,510 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,702,000. This represents a 37.62% 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 link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CEO J. E. Davis sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $194.14, for a total transaction of $1,941,400.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 132,423 shares in the company, valued at $25,708,601.22. This trade represents a 7.02% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Company insiders own 0.88% of the company’s stock.

Quest Diagnostics Trading Up 1.7%

DGX stock opened at $209.73 on Friday. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $195.83 and a 200 day moving average price of $192.79. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67, a current ratio of 1.18 and a quick ratio of 1.08. Quest Diagnostics Incorporated has a fifty-two week low of $164.65 and a fifty-two week high of $213.50. The stock has a market capitalization of $23.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.17, a P/E/G ratio of 2.50 and a beta of 0.59.

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 21st. The medical research company reported $2.50 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.37 by $0.13. Quest Diagnostics had a return on equity of 15.60% and a net margin of 9.07%.The company had revenue of $2.90 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.83 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.94 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 9.2% on a year-over-year basis. Quest Diagnostics has set its FY 2026 guidance at 10.630-10.830 EPS. Analysts expect that Quest Diagnostics Incorporated will post 10.72 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Quest Diagnostics Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 22nd. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, July 8th will be issued a dividend of $0.86 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, July 8th. This represents a $3.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.6%. Quest Diagnostics’s dividend payout ratio is currently 38.01%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Quest Diagnostics from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Sunday. Jefferies Financial Group reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $225.00 target price on shares of Quest Diagnostics in a research note on Tuesday, April 21st. Robert W. Baird increased their price target on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $224.00 to $229.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 22nd. Truist Financial increased their price target on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $220.00 to $225.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 22nd. Finally, Barclays raised their price target on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $225.00 to $230.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 22nd. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Quest Diagnostics presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $216.58.

Quest Diagnostics Company Profile

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE: DGX) is a leading provider of diagnostic information services that supports clinical decision-making for patients, physicians and healthcare organizations. The company operates a network of clinical laboratories and patient service centers that perform a broad range of laboratory tests and diagnostic assays used in routine care, disease diagnosis, monitoring and screening.

Its services span core clinical laboratory testing, anatomic pathology, molecular and genomic diagnostics, infectious disease testing and toxicology.