Quest Diagnostics Inc (DGX)
Health Care · Health Care Services · US stock · S&P 500 component
$243.28
▲ +4.35 (1.82%)
Fair valueFair
$233 −4.0% to fair value
$117fair band $199–$283$350
Day's range
$226.22 – $246.00
52-week range
$171.18 – $248.84
About Quest Diagnostics Inc
Quest Diagnostics provides diagnostic testing and information services. It runs laboratories and patient service centers that perform routine and specialised tests for physicians, hospitals and employers, and it analyses results for health care organizations. The company earns money from payments by health insurers, government programs and patients for tests performed. Testing volumes, reimbursement rates and the efficiency of its laboratory network influence its results.
Sales came to $11.6 billion in the last twelve months, having expanded at 3.7% a year across the last three years. Its operating margin came to 14.1%, and return on invested capital was 10%. Net debt stands at 2.3 times EBITDA. The company pays a dividend, yielding 1.4%. On the site's X-Ray Score it receives 56 out of 100.
Price chart
52-wk range $171.18 – $248.84Volume 1,685,881Daily, split-adjusted
Vitals
Market cap$27.2B
52-week range$171.18 – $248.84
Volume (last day)1,685,881
P/E (TTM)25.8
EBIT / EV yield5.0%
Free-cash-flow yield5.0%
Dividend yield1.4%
Revenue (TTM)$11.6B
Net income (TTM)$1.1B
Operating margin14.1%
Return on capital10.0%
Debt incl. leases$5.6B
Cash & securities$626M
Debt = borrowings plus lease liabilities. Cash & securities = cash, equivalents and short-term marketable securities (long-term securities are not counted, so net cash can be understated for companies that hold large long-term investments). Net debt = debt minus cash & securities. Source: latest SEC 10-Q/10-K. EBIT / EV yield = operating profit divided by market cap plus net debt.
Fair value estimate
$233middle half of models $201 – $262
Fair
−4.0% to fair value
Average of the 15 valuation models that pass our checks: multiples, discounted cash flow, dividend discount and earnings power value. A model more than 100% above or 60% below the price is left out as unrealistic. Model uncertainty is Medium, based on how far apart the models are. Undervalued or Overvalued means the gap to fair value is more than 17.5%.
Price $243
Undervalued < $199Fair $199 – $283Overvalued > $283
P/E multiple
$235
P/B multiple
$201
P/S multiple
$180
EV/EBITDA multiple
$217
EV/EBIT multiple
$209
EV/revenue multiple
$198
10-year DCF, EBITDA exit
$272
5-year DCF, EBITDA exit
$265
10-year DCF, revenue exit
$267
5-year DCF, revenue exit
$260
10-year DCF, growth exit
$217
5-year DCF, growth exit
$202
Dividend discount, stable
$171
Dividend discount, multi-stage
$359
Earnings power value
$251
Growth the price implies
13.3%/yr
A model estimate, not a price target or recommendation. Inputs: risk-free 5.13%, equity risk premium 4.30% (Damodaran). How it works.
What this means
Average business, fairly priced
The price sits inside our fair-value band. A high score does not guarantee a good outcome; it shifts the odds a little. Use the checklist as a prompt for your own research.
Before you invest · decision checklist
Ticked boxes are filled in from our data; the rest are yours to answer.
The five-lens scan
Every score explained in one sentence, ranked against Health Care peers. Open a lens to see the numbers behind it.
Strong: 70 to 100Fair: 50 to 69Weak: under 50No score: not enough data
Valuation
Fair
57/100
Priced about in line with its sector.
See the numbers →
EBIT / EV yield5.0%
Free-cash-flow yield5.0%
Fair value vs price1.0×
Growth
Fair
55/100
Growing at a typical pace for its sector.
See the numbers →
Revenue growth (3y)3.7%
EPS growth (3y)3.2%
Growth consistency100%
Profitability
Weak
45/100
Earns lower returns on its capital than most peers.
See the numbers →
Return on invested capital10.0%
Operating margin14.1%
Gross profitability22.6%
Financial health
Fair
68/100
Balance sheet is in typical shape for its sector.
See the numbers →
Piotroski F-Score8 / 9
Net debt / EBITDA2.3×
Interest coverNo interest cost
Dividends
Fair
55/100
Dividend is typical for its sector.
See the numbers →
Dividend yield1.4%
Dividends vs free cash flow28%
Dividend growth5.0%
Quarterly results: last 6 quarters
+12.1%
Mar '25
+15.2%
Jun '25
+13.2%
Sep '25
+7.1%
Dec '25
+9.2%
Mar '26
+10.2%
Jun '26
Revenue against the same quarter a year earlier. Latest quarter revenue $3.0B, diluted EPS $2.84.
Compare with peers
DVA Davita Inc.67 CI Cigna Group66 CVS CVS HEALTH Corp52 LH Labcorp Holdings Inc.44Other Health Care Services companies by X-Ray Score.
SWOT analysis: Quest Diagnostics Inc
Strengthsinside the company
- Operating margin of 14.1% is well above the 7.0% median of industry peers, a sign of pricing power or lower costs.
- Operating profit covers interest 50x, so debt costs are a small drag.
- Passes 8 of the 9 Piotroski tests, which points to improving profitability, funding and efficiency.
Weaknessesinside the company
- No clear weakness in the figures we track.
Opportunitiesvaluation and setting
- Revenue growth picked up to 11.8% last year from 3.7% a year over three years.
- Dividends use only 28% of free cash flow, which leaves room to raise them.
- Price momentum is strong on the weekly and monthly signals (trends can reverse).
Threatsvaluation and setting
- Trades at 25.7x earnings, 34% above the 19.1x median of industry peers, so the price already assumes better results.
Written by fixed rules from the figures on this page and the peer table below: filings, our fair value, the sector climate and the price trend. It summarises the data, it is not a forecast or advice.
Compare DGX with peers and sector
Medians of 4 Health Care Services peers and of 59 Health Care stocks in our universe.
Largest peers (X-Ray Score): CVS 52, CI 66, LH 44, DVA 67.
| Metric | DGX | Peers | Sector |
|---|---|---|---|
| X-Ray Score (out of 100) | 56 | 59 | 49 |
| Valuation | 57 | 87 | 52 |
| Growth | 55 | 52 | 47 |
| Profitability | 45 | 50 | 51 |
| Financial health | 68 | 45 | 48 |
| Dividends | 55 | 63 | 50 |
Sector leaders: highest X-Ray Score in Health Care
DGX ranks #23 of 60 in Health Care and #3 of 5 in Health Care Services by X-Ray Score. A higher score is stronger on our five pillars; it is a ranking of facts, not a forecast.
Green means better than the peer median, red worse (only where a higher or lower figure is clearly better). A dash means too few companies report the figure. P/E, EV/EBITDA and price changes are not graded: a different level is not good or bad by itself.
Factor ratings for DGX
Each factor is rated by where DGX stands among the 60 Health Care stocks in our universe.
Rating against the sector
Goodthe top third of these stocks
Averagethe middle third of these stocks
Badthe bottom third of these stocks
"Beats" is the share of those stocks it is ahead of.
Against its own history
The last columns set today's figure against the company's own median of its last five financial years:
▲ Betterbetter than its usual level
▼ Worseworse than its usual level
≈ In linewithin its usual range
For valuation factors Good means cheaper than most of the sector and Better means cheaper than usual for this company, which is not the same as a bargain.
In total: 9 Good · 13 Average · 1 Bad of 23
Growth: 1 · 2 · 0
Profitability: 0 · 4 · 1
Financial strength: 2 · 2 · 0
Valuation: 2 · 3 · 0
Cash flow: 2 · 2 · 0
Efficiency: 2 · 0 · 0
| Factor | DGX | Rating | Sector median | Own 5-year median | Against own history |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Growth | |||||
| Revenue growth, 3 years a year | +3.7% | Average beats 38% | +5.5% | – | – |
| Revenue growth, last year | +11.8% | Good beats 79% | +7.1% | +6.7% | ▲ Better |
| EPS growth, 3 years a year | +3.2% | Average beats 47% | +5.0% | – | – |
| Profitability | |||||
| Gross margin | 33.1% | Bad beats 19% | 65.0% | 33.2% | ≈ In line |
| Operating margin | 14.1% | Average beats 44% | 16.4% | 14.1% | ≈ In line |
| Net margin | 9.2% | Average beats 44% | 11.1% | 9.2% | ≈ In line |
| Return on invested capital | 10.0% | Average beats 41% | 12.2% | – | – |
| Return on equity | 14.1% | Average beats 54% | 13.7% | 13.8% | ≈ In line |
| Financial strength | |||||
| Net debt / EBITDA | 2.3x | Average beats 42% | 2.0x | 2.4x | ≈ In line |
| Interest cover | 50.0x | Good beats 82% | 9.4x | 9.6x | ▲ Better |
| Current ratio | 1.59 | Average beats 56% | 1.52 | 1.22 | ▲ Better |
| Piotroski F-score | 8 / 9 | Good beats 85% | 6 / 9 | – | – |
| Valuation | |||||
| P/E ratio | 25.7x | Average beats 65% | 28.2x | 19.5x | ▼ Worse |
| Price / book | 3.6x | Average beats 52% | 3.7x | 2.7x | ▼ Worse |
| Price / sales | 2.4x | Good beats 68% | 3.7x | 1.8x | ▼ Worse |
| EV / EBITDA | 14.7x | Good beats 68% | 17.6x | 11.7x | ▼ Worse |
| Free cash flow yield | 5.0% | Average beats 59% | 4.4% | 6.9% | ▼ Worse |
| Cash flow | |||||
| Free cash flow margin | 11.7% | Average beats 34% | 16.3% | 12.3% | ≈ In line |
| Cash from operations / net income | 1.79 | Good beats 68% | 1.61 | 1.53 | ▲ Better |
| Free cash flow growth, 3 years a year | +1.1% | Average beats 40% | +4.3% | – | – |
| Accruals (lower is better) | −5.0% | Good beats 71% | −3.9% | – | – |
| Efficiency | |||||
| Inventory turnover | 33.2x | Good beats 97% | 2.9x | 33.6x | ≈ In line |
| Days sales outstanding | 53 days | Good beats 75% | 62 days | 48 days | ▼ Worse |
These ratings compare companies with each other and describe the past; they are not a forecast, a recommendation or part of the X-Ray Score. A factor is left out when its data is missing or meaningless (for example a P/E on negative earnings). A dash in the history columns means fewer than three usable years.
Fundamentals checklist
● 5 Good · ● 10 Average · ● 1 BadCash quality
Earnings backed by cashGood
Free-cash-flow yieldAverage
Risk models
Altman Z''Average
Piotroski F-ScoreGood
Growth
EPS growth (3y)Average
Free-cash-flow growth (3y)Average
Revenue growth (3y)Average
Growth consistencyGood
Balance sheet
Current ratioAverage
Net debt / EBITDAAverage
Interest coverGood
Valuation
Fair value vs priceAverage
EBIT / EV yieldGood
Profitability
Return on invested capitalAverage
Operating marginAverage
Gross profitabilityBad
Each check is graded against the company's sector, not a fixed number. Checklist score 54/100.
Financials
| FY21 | FY22 | FY23 | FY24 | FY25 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue | $10.8B | $9.9B | $9.3B | $9.9B | $11.0B |
| Operating income | $2.4B | $1.4B | $1.3B | $1.3B | $1.6B |
| Net income | $2.0B | $946M | $854M | $871M | $992M |
| Operating cash flow | $2.2B | $1.7B | $1.3B | $1.3B | $1.9B |
| Operating margin | 22.1% | 14.4% | 13.6% | 13.6% | 14.1% |
| Free cash flow | $1.8B | $1.3B | $864M | $909M | $1.4B |
| Diluted EPS | $15.55 | $7.97 | $7.49 | $7.69 | $8.75 |
Fiscal years, from SEC filings.
Technical summary
Daily
Strongly bullish
12 bullish · 1 neutral · 3 bearish
Weekly
Strongly bullish
11 bullish · 1 neutral · 0 bearish
Monthly
Strongly bullish
7 bullish · 0 neutral · 1 bearish
Moving averages (daily)
| SMA 10 | 235.6 | Bullish |
| EMA 10 | 236.7 | Bullish |
| SMA 20 | 233.6 | Bullish |
| EMA 20 | 235.5 | Bullish |
| SMA 50 | 236.8 | Bullish |
| EMA 50 | 233.3 | Bullish |
| SMA 100 | 224.7 | Bullish |
| EMA 100 | 225.5 | Bullish |
| SMA 200 | 208.6 | Bullish |
| EMA 200 | 212.5 | Bullish |
Oscillators (daily)
| RSI (14) | 62.04 | Neutral |
| MACD (12, 26) | 0.91 | Bullish |
| Momentum (12) | 6.52 | Bullish |
| Stochastic %K (14) | 87.91 | Bearish |
| Williams %R (14) | -12.09 | Bearish |
| CCI (20) | 142.7 | Bearish |
Pivot points (classic, last session)
S3 211.2 | S2 218.7 | S1 231.0 | Pivot 238.5 | R1 250.8 | R2 258.3 | R3 270.6 |
Signals describe what the chart is doing, not what to do. Moving averages: price above the average is bullish. Oscillators use the usual thresholds (RSI 30/70, Stochastic 20/80, CCI ±100, Williams %R −80/−20; MACD and momentum above zero are bullish). Weekly and monthly views use closing prices only.
Dividends
Paid, last 12 months
3.38 USD
Yield on today's price
1.39%
Frequency
Quarterly
Next ex-dividend date
Not announced
| Ex-dividend date | Amount per share |
|---|---|
| 0.8600 | |
| 0.8600 | |
| 0.8600 | |
| 0.8000 | |
| 0.8000 | |
| 0.8000 | |
| 0.8000 | |
| 0.7500 | |
| 0.7500 | |
| 0.7500 | |
| 0.7500 | |
| 0.7100 |
Ex-dividend dates and amounts from EODHD. Shown as declared, before tax.
ETFs that hold DGX
| ETF | Share of the fund |
|---|---|
| IHF iShares U.S. Healthcare Providers | 3.51% |
| QLTY GMO U.S. Quality | 0.85% |
| COWZ Pacer US Cash Cows 100 | 0.46% |
| TMSL T. Rowe Price Small-Mid Cap | 0.44% |
| FVD First Trust Value Line Dividend Index | 0.43% |
| IYH iShares U.S. Healthcare | 0.42% |
| XLV Health Care Select Sector SPDR | 0.41% |
| VOE Vanguard Mid-Cap Value | 0.40% |
The eight funds with the largest weight in DGX among the ETFs we cover, from each fund's latest SEC Form N-PORT (quarter-end positions, so they can be months old). All ETFs.
DGX stock splits
DGX has split its stock 2 times since 2001. The latest was a 2-for-1 split on 21 Jun 2005.
Full DGX stock split history →DGX SEC filings
8-KSEC EDGAR
Results of operations
8-KSEC EDGAR
Other events
8-KSEC EDGAR
Director or officer change
10-QSEC EDGAR
Quarterly report
8-KSEC EDGAR
Results of operations
8-KSEC EDGAR
Shareholder vote results
8-KSEC EDGAR
Entered a material agreement
8-KSEC EDGAR
Other events
Where the numbers come from
Statements SEC EDGAR filings (10-K, 10-Q), quarters derived from year-to-date figures.
Prices end-of-day closes, split-adjusted.
Industry inputs beta, multiples and equity risk premium from Damodaran Online (NYU Stern).
StocksXray is for education only and is not financial advice. Scores and fair values are model estimates from public filings and carry uncertainty.