Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX) Will Pay A Larger Dividend Than Last Year At US$0.66

The board of Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX) has announced that it will be increasing its dividend on the 20th of April to US$0.66. This makes the dividend yield 1.7%, which is above the industry average.

See our latest analysis for Quest Diagnostics

Quest Diagnostics' Payment Has Solid Earnings Coverage

While it is great to have a strong dividend yield, we should also consider whether the payment is sustainable. However, Quest Diagnostics' earnings easily cover the dividend. As a result, a large proportion of what it earned was being reinvested back into the business.

EPS is set to fall by 49.3% over the next 12 months. If the dividend continues along the path it has been on recently, we estimate the payout ratio could be 32%, which is comfortable for the company to continue in the future.

Quest Diagnostics Has A Solid Track Record

The company has an extended history of paying stable dividends. Since 2012, the dividend has gone from US$0.40 to US$2.64. This implies that the company grew its distributions at a yearly rate of about 21% over that duration. So, dividends have been growing pretty quickly, and even more impressively, they haven't experienced any notable falls during this period.

The Dividend Looks Likely To Grow

The company's investors will be pleased to have been receiving dividend income for some time. Quest Diagnostics has impressed us by growing EPS at 29% per year over the past five years. Earnings have been growing rapidly, and with a low payout ratio we think that the company could turn out to be a great dividend stock.

Quest Diagnostics Looks Like A Great Dividend Stock

Overall, we think this could be an attractive income stock, and it is only getting better by paying a higher dividend this year. The distributions are easily covered by earnings, and there is plenty of cash being generated as well. If earnings do fall over the next 12 months, the dividend could be buffeted a little bit, but we don't think it should cause too much of a problem in the long term. Taking this all into consideration, this looks like it could be a good dividend opportunity.

Market movements attest to how highly valued a consistent dividend policy is compared to one which is more unpredictable. Still, investors need to consider a host of other factors, apart from dividend payments, when analysing a company. To that end, Quest Diagnostics has 3 warning signs (and 1 which is concerning) we think you should know about. If you are a dividend investor, you might also want to look at our curated list of high yield dividend stocks.

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This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned.