FPC Investment Advisory Inc. Invests $45,000 in Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX)

FPC Investment Advisory Inc. purchased a new position in Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX) during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund purchased 275 shares of the medical research company’s stock, valued at approximately $45,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Landscape Capital Management L.L.C. purchased a new stake in Quest Diagnostics in the third quarter valued at approximately $1,363,000. Sanctuary Advisors LLC raised its stake in Quest Diagnostics by 85.5% in the third quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC now owns 17,969 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $2,940,000 after purchasing an additional 8,282 shares in the last quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC raised its stake in Quest Diagnostics by 7.7% in the third quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC now owns 92,830 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $14,412,000 after purchasing an additional 6,619 shares in the last quarter. BankPlus Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Quest Diagnostics in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $355,000. Finally, Van ECK Associates Corp raised its stake in Quest Diagnostics by 980.3% in the fourth quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 24,198 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $3,650,000 after purchasing an additional 21,958 shares in the last quarter. 88.06% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, SVP Michael E. Prevoznik sold 604 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $170.99, for a total value of $103,277.96. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 39,845 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,813,096.55. This trade represents a 1.49 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Catherine T. Doherty sold 535 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $169.71, for a total value of $90,794.85. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 71,356 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $12,109,826.76. The trade was a 0.74 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 2,792 shares of company stock valued at $465,998 over the last quarter. 0.79% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. UBS Group raised their target price on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $166.00 to $170.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Mizuho raised their target price on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $177.00 to $178.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Barclays increased their price target on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $168.00 to $175.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $173.00 to $180.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Finally, Truist Financial increased their price target on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $172.00 to $182.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Seven equities research 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 company. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $178.23.

Quest Diagnostics Stock Up 0.2 %

Shares of Quest Diagnostics stock opened at $172.44 on Friday. 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 Incorporated has a 52-week low of $123.66 and a 52-week high of $172.91. The stock has a market capitalization of $19.25 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.42, a P/E/G ratio of 2.16 and a beta of 0.91. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $157.56 and its 200-day moving average price is $155.93.

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The medical research company reported $2.23 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.19 by $0.04. Quest Diagnostics had a net margin of 8.80% and a return on equity of 15.07%. Equities research analysts forecast that Quest Diagnostics Incorporated will post 9.7 EPS for the current year.

Quest Diagnostics Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 21st. Stockholders of record on Monday, April 7th will be issued a $0.80 dividend. This is a boost from Quest Diagnostics’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.75. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, April 7th. This represents a $3.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.86%. Quest Diagnostics’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 39.01%.

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.