Quest Diagnostics (DGX)
Health Care · $25.7B market cap · SEC CIK 0001022079
fundamentals score out of 100
Next reports on Oct 19, 2026, before the open, with analysts expecting $2.88 in earnings per share.
The case for DGX
- Revenue growing 9.9% year over year.
- Moves less than the market (beta 0.56).
- Pays a modest 2.1% dividend.
The case against
- Growth is weak (40/100): revenue +9.9%, EPS +13.0%, +3.2% a year over five years.
- Long-term debt of $5.2B against $420M of cash.
What the score is made of
Each factor is half a curve over reported figures and half a rank among the other Health Care companies (momentum is judged against fixed thresholds only), and the five are blended by weight. It describes the last filing and the current price. It is not a forecast.
| Valuewhat you pay for the earnings, sales, assets and cash | 63 |
|---|---|
| Growthhow fast revenue and earnings are moving, this year and over five | 40 |
| Profitabilityhow much of the revenue becomes profit, and how much of that is cash | 52 |
| Momentumhow the price has behaved lately | 83 |
| Stabilityhow violently it moves, what it owes and what it pays you | 73 |
- Each factor except momentum is half fixed thresholds, half rank among the 59 Health Care companies.
Key numbers
| Price / earnings | 24.2× |
|---|---|
| Price / book | 3.12× |
| Price / sales | 2.2× |
| Revenue growth (YoY) | +9.9% |
| EPS growth (YoY) | +13.0% |
| Gross margin | 33% |
| Operating margin | 14% |
| Net margin | 9% |
| Return on equity | 14% |
| Debt / equity | 0.75× |
| Current ratio | 1.59 |
| Dividend yield | 2.10% |
| Beta | 0.56 |
| 52-week range | $171.18 – $248.84 |
| Position in that range | 82% of the way up |
| 3-month return | +25.6% |
| 1-year return | +33.4% |
Five years of financials, as filed
Pulled from Quest Diagnostics's XBRL filings on SEC EDGAR. Italic rows are derived from the rows above.
| FY2025 | FY2024 | FY2023 | FY2022 | FY2021 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue | $11.0B | $9.9B | $9.3B | $9.9B | $10.8B |
| Operating income | $1.6B | $1.3B | $1.3B | $1.4B | $2.4B |
| Net income | $992M | $871M | $854M | $946M | $2.0B |
| Operating cash flow | $1.9B | $1.3B | $1.3B | $1.7B | $2.2B |
| Capital expenditure | $527M | $425M | $408M | $404M | $403M |
| Total assets | $16.2B | $16.2B | $14.0B | $12.8B | $13.6B |
| Shareholder equity | $7.2B | $6.8B | $6.3B | $5.9B | $6.4B |
| Cash | $420M | $549M | $686M | $315M | $872M |
| Long-term debt | $5.2B | $5.6B | $4.4B | $4.0B | $4.0B |
| Free cash flow | $1.4B | $909M | $864M | $1.3B | $1.8B |
| Operating margin | 14.1% | 13.6% | 13.6% | 14.4% | 22.1% |
| Net margin | 9.0% | 8.8% | 9.2% | 9.6% | 18.5% |
| Diluted shares | 113M | 113M | 113M | 118M | 128M |
Share count is down 11.7% over 4 years. Buybacks have been shrinking the pie.
What Quest Diagnostics says it does
The Clinical Testing Industry ." Critical Accounting Policies The preparation of financial statements in conformity with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States requires us to make estimates and assumptions and select accounting policies that affect our reported financial results and the disclosure of contingent assets and liabilities. Our revenues are primarily comprised of a high volume of relatively low-dollar transactions, and about one-half of our total costs and expenses consist of employee compensation and benefits. Due to the nature of our business, several of our accounting policies involve significant estimates and judgments: • revenues and accounts receivable associated with DIS; • reserves for general and professional liability claims; • reserves for other legal proceedings; and • accounting for and recoverability of goodwill. Revenues and accounts receivable associated with DIS…
Risk factors DGX lists in its 10-K
- The U.S. healthcare system continues to evolve, and medical laboratory testing market fundamentals are changing, and our business could be adversely impacted if we fail to adapt
- Government payers, such as Medicare and Medicaid, have taken steps to reduce the utilization and reimbursement of healthcare services, including clinical testing services
- Health plans and other third parties have taken steps to reduce the utilization and reimbursement of health services, including clinical testing services
- Failure to develop, acquire licenses for, introduce, or commercialize new tests, technology and services could negatively impact our testing volume, revenues and profitability
- Significant changes or developments in U.S. laws or policies, including changes in U.S. healthcare regulation, may have a material adverse effect on our business
- We are subject to numerous legal and regulatory requirements governing our activities, and we may face substantial fines and penalties, and our business activities may be impacted, if we fail to comply
- Our business and operations could be adversely impacted by the FDA's approach to regulation
- Failure to accurately bill for our services, or to comply with applicable laws relating to billing government healthcare programs, could have a material adverse effect on our business
- We are subject to numerous political (including geopolitical), legal, operational and other risks as a result of our international operations which could impact our business in many ways
- We may be unable to obtain, maintain or enforce our intellectual property rights and may be subject to intellectual property litigation that could adversely impact our business
- Adverse results in material litigation could have an adverse financial impact and an adverse impact on our client base and reputation
- Our outstanding debt may impair our financial and operating flexibility
- Our business could be negatively affected if we are unable to continue to strengthen our efficiency
- Our business operations and reputation may be materially impaired if we do not comply with privacy laws or information security policies