CluenexQuest Diagnostics DGX
Quest Diagnostics scores average on business quality (5.1 of 10). Here is why, in plain words, and what our sealed record shows.
Why it matters
- What Quest Diagnostics does
Quest Diagnostics runs diagnostic testing services, charging health plans, patients, and hospitals for clinical lab work that guides medical treatment decisions. The company is leaning into specialized testing expansion to capture higher-value clinical volumes as routine testing stabilizes.
- What it does best
Quest operates at massive scale, delivering a gross margin of 33.2% that outpaces peer CVS at 14.2% and peer CI at 9.1%. This testing density creates severe cost barriers for smaller regional labs trying to match its per-test economics.
- The main risk
Net debt sits at $5.5 billion against an interest coverage ratio of 6.3x, leaving the capital structure vulnerable if earnings compress during cost pressures. Debt service demands consistent cash generation to avoid balance-sheet tightening.
Quality, check by check
Scored against its own industry, from company filings.
Operating margin stands at 14.6% with a free cash flow margin tracking well. Profitability remains stable, though capital intensity limits margin expansion at higher revenue scales.
Scale advantages create a wide distribution network that locks in healthcare providers and health plans. Its operating margin sits in the 44th sector percentile, reflecting steady competitive positioning.
Revenue grew 11.8% to reach $11.6 billion, marking an acceleration from prior annual periods where growth had stalled or dipped.
Total debt of $5.9 billion against $420 million of cash creates a net debt load of $5.5 billion, while interest coverage stands at 6.3x. Free cash flow reached $1.3 billion, showing steady softness compared to prior years.
Insiders
Executives and directors, from SEC Form 4 filings we read ourselves. Open market trades only; grants, option exercises and pre-planned sales left out.
No open market buys or unplanned sales by executives or directors.
Our sealed record on DGX
Verdicts appear here 30 days after we publish them; members see today's. Each one is in the nightly ledger, fingerprinted the night it was made.
The first sealed verdicts appear here on Oct 11, 2026.
Questions
Quest Diagnostics scores average on the Cluenex quality check (5.1 of 10), measured against its own industry. Profitability is weak, moat fair, growth steady and financial health fair.
In the last 90 days of SEC Form 4 filings: No open market buys or unplanned sales by executives or directors.
Oct 22, 2026, before the open.
See DGX today
- Today's verdict on DGX, and why
- Fair value with cautious, base and optimistic cases
- The exact price that would change the verdict
- Which stocks each signal names, the night it fires
Cite this page: Cluenex, “Quest Diagnostics (DGX)”, https://cluenex.com/stocks/dgx/, data as of Oct 10, 2026.