Quest Diagnostics Incorporated · DGX · FY2026 Q2 · Calendar Q3 2026

Quest Diagnostics Beats on Volume and AI Automation, Raises Full-Year Guidance

Quest Diagnostics delivered a strong Q2 2026, beating consensus on both revenue and EPS with double-digit organic volume growth and higher tests per requisition. Management raised full-year guidance for the second consecutive quarter, reflecting momentum across physician, hospital, and consumer health channels. AI-driven automation and advanced diagnostic portfolios -- including Haystack MRD, cardiometabolic panels, and Genius digital pathology -- are increasingly contributing to both top-line growth and productivity gains.

Reported Before market openNYSEHealthcare $25.96B market cap
100quality score

Company context

Snapshot as of publication

Quest Diagnostics Incorporated, founded in 1967 and headquartered in Secaucus, New Jersey, is a premier provider of diagnostic testing, information, and related services, serving clients both domestically and internationally. Its core business involves the development and provision of diverse diagnostic information services, such as routine, advanced clinical, and anatomic pathology testing. While primarily operating under the Quest Diagnostics brand, it also leverages specialized identities like AmeriPath, Dermpath Diagnostics, ExamOne, and Quanum to reach a broad spectrum of clients.…

Earnings scorecard

Reported versus consensus
Reported EPS $3.12 Consensus $3
EPS surprise +10.6% Reported versus consensus
Reported revenue $3.04B Consensus $2.97B
Revenue surprise +2.4% Reported versus consensus

Earnings History

Estimate Beat Miss Match
DGX EPS earnings history estimate and actual scatter chart 9 reported fiscal quarters and 4 future estimate-only quarters. Q1 '24 estimate $1.86 Q1 '24 actual $2.04, beat Q2 '24 estimate $2.34 Q2 '24 actual $2.35, match Q3 '24 estimate $2.26 Q3 '24 actual $2.30, beat Q2 '25 estimate $2.57 Q2 '25 actual $2.62, beat Q3 '25 estimate $2.50 Q3 '25 actual $2.60, beat Q4 '25 estimate $2.36 Q4 '25 actual $2.42, beat Q1 '26 estimate $2.37 Q1 '26 actual $2.50, beat Q2 '26 estimate $2.82 Q2 '26 actual $3.12, beat Q3 '26 estimate $2.85 Q4 '26 estimate $2.66 Q1 '27 estimate $2.73 Q2 '27 estimate $3.13
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Analyst Consensus ?

ConsensusHold33 ratings
Bullish1236.4%
Neutral1854.5%
Bearish39.1%

Analyst 52W Price Targets

$234.3Current
$125Low
$195.29Average
$260High

Latest persisted target per named analyst; persisted current price from FN2's market snapshot as of Jul 30, 2026. Not an FN2 forecast.

Firm-level rating actions

FMP grade actions identify the grading firm, not a named analyst.

FirmRatingPrior ratingActionDate
JP Morgan Neutral NeutralMaintainJul 28, 2026
UBS Neutral NeutralMaintainJul 24, 2026
Truist Securities Hold HoldMaintainJul 24, 2026
Mizuho Outperform OutperformMaintainJul 24, 2026
Barclays Overweight OverweightMaintainJul 24, 2026
Baird Neutral NeutralMaintainJul 24, 2026
Evercore ISI Group In Line In LineMaintainApr 8, 2026
Jefferies Buy BuyMaintainFeb 11, 2026
Citigroup Neutral NeutralMaintainFeb 10, 2026
Piper Sandler Neutral NeutralMaintainOct 27, 2025
Leerink Partners Outperform OutperformMaintainOct 21, 2025
Deutsche Bank Hold HoldMaintainJul 23, 2025
Morgan Stanley Overweight Equal WeightUpgradeDec 17, 2024
B of A Securities Buy BuyMaintainDec 13, 2024
Wells Fargo Equal Weight Equal WeightMaintainFeb 3, 2023
Credit Suisse Neutral NeutralMaintainJan 25, 2023
Keybanc Overweight OverweightMaintainDec 13, 2021
Argus Research Buy HoldUpgradeOct 21, 2020
SunTrust Robinson Humphrey Hold HoldMaintainMay 21, 2020
CFRA Hold Strong BuyDowngradeApr 22, 2020
Bank of America Neutral UnderperformUpgradeDec 19, 2019
Canaccord Genuity Buy BuyMaintainJul 24, 2019
Goldman Sachs Sell NeutralDowngradeJul 15, 2019
Argus Hold BuyDowngradeJan 31, 2019
William Blair Outperform Market PerformUpgradeJun 8, 2018
Raymond James Market Perform OutperformDowngradeSep 25, 2017
Jyske Bank Sell SellMaintainJun 24, 2016
JMP Securities Perform Market PerformMaintainMar 27, 2015
ISI Group Neutral NeutralMaintainNov 19, 2013
Craig-Hallum Buy BuyMaintainSep 19, 2013
Maxim Group Buy HoldUpgradeAug 8, 2013
Oppenheimer Underperform UnderperformMaintainJan 28, 2013
Macquarie Neutral UnderperformUpgradeNov 20, 2012
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Named analyst price targets

Upside is calculated against the persisted current price $234.3. FMP does not supply a rating on these named-analyst rows.

FirmAnalyst52W targetPrice when postedUpsideDate
Argus ResearchAnalyst unavailable$260$235.34 +11.0%Jul 29, 2026
UBSKevin Caliendo$232$231.3 -1.0%Jul 24, 2026
Robert W. BairdAnalyst unavailable$255$227.9 +8.8%Jul 24, 2026
BarclaysAnalyst unavailable$250$227.9 +6.7%Jul 23, 2026
JefferiesAnalyst unavailable$245$227.9 +4.6%Jul 23, 2026
Robert W. BairdAnalyst unavailable$236$207.44 +0.7%Jul 13, 2026
Evercore ISIAnalyst unavailable$225$205.18 -4.0%Apr 21, 2026
JefferiesAnalyst unavailable$225$205.18 -4.0%Apr 21, 2026
Evercore ISIAnalyst unavailable$210$198.81 -10.4%Apr 8, 2026
Mizuho SecuritiesAnalyst unavailable$235$209.32 +0.3%Feb 12, 2026
UBSAnalyst unavailable$210$206.72 -10.4%Feb 11, 2026
Truist FinancialAnalyst unavailable$220$205.62 -6.1%Feb 11, 2026
Evercore ISIElizabeth Anderson$220$205.43 -6.1%Feb 11, 2026
Robert W. BairdAnalyst unavailable$219$205.35 -6.5%Feb 11, 2026
JefferiesTycho Peterson$220$205.24 -6.1%Feb 10, 2026
BarclaysAnalyst unavailable$210$182.35 -10.4%Jan 30, 2026
Piper SandlerAnalyst unavailable$200$182.18 -14.6%Oct 27, 2025
Truist FinancialAnalyst unavailable$205$184.64 -12.5%Oct 22, 2025
Morgan StanleyErin Wright$207$183.18 -11.7%Oct 22, 2025
BarclaysAnalyst unavailable$195$183.18 -16.8%Oct 22, 2025
JefferiesAnalyst unavailable$215$183.34 -8.2%Oct 21, 2025
Leerink PartnersAnalyst unavailable$210$184.1 -10.4%Oct 21, 2025
UBSKevin Caliendo$190$186.82 -18.9%Oct 17, 2025
Mizuho SecuritiesAnalyst unavailable$210$186.82 -10.4%Oct 17, 2025
Truist FinancialAnalyst unavailable$195$184 -16.8%Oct 14, 2025
Evercore ISIAnalyst unavailable$190$181.89 -18.9%Oct 8, 2025
BarclaysAnalyst unavailable$190$182.07 -18.9%Oct 2, 2025
Robert W. BairdAnalyst unavailable$194$178.66 -17.2%Aug 25, 2025
Evercore ISIElizabeth Anderson$185$170.48 -21.0%Jul 23, 2025
Redburn PartnersJamie Clark$195$167.96 -16.8%Apr 2, 2025
Piper SandlerDavid Westenberg$180$162.47 -23.2%Feb 3, 2025
Truist FinancialDavid MacDonald$182$163.1 -22.3%Jan 31, 2025
Robert W. BairdEric Coldwell$189$163.1 -19.3%Jan 31, 2025
CitigroupPatrick Donnelly$185$157.47 -21.0%Oct 23, 2024
Leerink PartnersMichael Cherny$165$157.47 -29.6%Oct 23, 2024
BarclaysStephanie Davis$168$157.47 -28.3%Oct 23, 2024
Robert W. BairdEric Coldwell$182$157.47 -22.3%Oct 23, 2024
CFRAPaige Meyer$178$157.46 -24.0%Oct 22, 2024
Truist FinancialDavid MacDonald$165$150.79 -29.6%Oct 7, 2024
Mizuho SecuritiesAnn Hynes$160$143.21 -31.7%Jul 29, 2024
Robert W. BairdEric Coldwell$154$140.96 -34.3%Jul 24, 2024
Truist FinancialDavid MacDonald$158$144.11 -32.6%Jul 15, 2024
BarclaysStephanie Davis$144$137.55 -38.5%Apr 25, 2024
JefferiesBrian Tanquilut$155$127.42 -33.8%Feb 7, 2024
Wells FargoAnalyst unavailable$140$143.29 -40.2%Feb 3, 2023
Morgan StanleyAnalyst unavailable$158$155.5 -32.6%Jan 6, 2023
CitigroupAnalyst unavailable$125$149.27 -46.6%Nov 17, 2022
Morgan StanleyAnalyst unavailable$142$136.13 -39.4%May 3, 2022
Wells FargoAnalyst unavailable$150$133.75 -36.0%Apr 25, 2022
CitigroupRalph Giacobbe$175$140 -25.3%Apr 9, 2022
Deutsche BankPito Chickering$190$142.3 -18.9%Jan 15, 2022
KeyBancDonald Hooker$170$161.75 -27.4%Dec 13, 2021
Credit SuisseA.J. Rice$150$155.22 -36.0%Sep 9, 2021
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Market reaction

prior-close to event-session close
Stock move +8.6% Event window
SPY move -1.2% Same window
Abnormal move +9.8% Stock minus SPY
Volume 4.1× Versus trailing sessions
Subsequent drift +3.0% Up to 20 sessions
DGXSPY benchmark

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Transcript intelligence

What changed

Compared to Q1 2026, adjusted EPS growth accelerated to 19% from 13%, and revenue growth remained above 10%. New York State approved the Haystack tumor-informed MRD test, making Quest one of only two labs with this clearance, and the test was integrated with Flatiron Health's Onco EMR platform. The Genius AI-driven digital diagnostic system for Pap smear analysis was deployed to additional lab sites. Management now expects operating margin improvement in H2 as Project Nova expense timing clarifies.

Guidance delta

Full-year 2026 revenue guidance raised from $11.78-$11.9B (prior quarter) to $11.95-$12.05B, a $170M increase at the midpoint. Adjusted EPS guidance raised from $9.58-$9.78 to $9.97-$10.17, a $0.39 increase at the midpoint. Capex guidance now explicitly stated at $550M. The company has raised guidance in both Q1 and Q2 of fiscal 2026.

Key takeaways

  • Q2 revenue grew 10.2% YoY with adjusted EPS up 19%, reflecting strong volume and higher tests per requisition.
  • Full-year 2026 guidance raised to $11.95-$12.05 billion revenue and $9.97-$10.17 EPS; capex forecast at $550 million.
  • Growth driven by physician, hospital (Corewell Health, Fresenius), and consumer health channels, plus advanced diagnostic offerings.
  • AI, automation, and the Invigorate cost-savings program target 3% annual savings and productivity gains.
  • Margin pressure from Nova expenses, Corewell/Fresenius mix, and fuel costs, but operating margin expected to improve in H2.

Management priorities

  • Roll out AI-driven tools like Genius and IntelliDraw to additional lab sites.
  • Commercially expand Haystack MRD through Flatiron Health and broader oncology networks.
  • Scale Corewell Co-Lab partnership into a joint venture in early 2027.
  • Introduce new consumer health panels including thyroid and wellness biomarkers.
  • Maintain capex around $550 million to support technology and automation initiatives.

Related earnings events

Healthcare

Sources

  1. Earnings call transcript and parsed analysis · 2026-07-23T17:03:49.960972+00:00
  2. FN2 earnings calendar · 2026-07-30T01:23:13.872335+00:00
  3. Polygon adjusted daily market bars · 2026-07-30T19:21:09.546521+00:00
  4. Financial Modeling Prep analyst price-target consensus and quote snapshot · 2026-07-30T19:21:09.543757+00:00

Methodology

Reported and consensus figures come from FN2's earnings event records. Market reaction and volume are calculated from daily adjusted bars around the event; abnormal move subtracts the SPY move over the same window.

Analyst target low, average, and high values are derived at request time from each named analyst's latest persisted FMP target. The current-price marker comes from FN2's persisted market snapshot. They are sell-side estimates, not an FN2 valuation or recommendation.

Transcript intelligence is a structured synthesis of the current and prior earnings-call analyses. Missing values stay missing and are never estimated.

By FN2 Research · Updated . For educational purposes only; not investment advice.