DGX vs LH Stock Comparison

Quest Diagnostics and Labcorp Holdings Prices as of Oct 26, 2026 Peers: Industry group
DGX Quest Diagnostics Inc
$242.92 +2.8% 1M +33.3% 1Y
Market cap
$26.42B
P/E
23.4x
Revenue (TTM)
$11.84B
Div. yield
0.01%
Diagnostic Labs Healthcare
9 wins
LH Labcorp Holdings Inc.
$329.98 +6.6% 1M +18.1% 1Y
Market cap
$26.77B
P/E
26.7x
Revenue (TTM)
$14.35B
Div. yield
–
Diagnostic Labs Healthcare
2 wins

Head to Head

11 decided of 12

Quest Diagnostics leads on 9 of the 12 questions below (Quest Diagnostics 9, Labcorp Holdings 2). Which ones matter depends on what you are buying for; a cheap multiple and slow growth often come together.

QuestionDGXLHLeader
Larger companyMarket capitalisation $26.42B $26.77B LH
Cheaper on earningsLower P/E, profitable companies only 23.4x 26.7x DGX
Cheaper on forward earningsLower price / next fiscal year consensus EPS 22.2x 19.3x LH
Faster revenue growthRevenue growth, trailing twelve months +9.1% +6.4% DGX
More profitableNet margin, trailing twelve months 9.5% 7.0% DGX
Better return on capitalReturn on invested capital 9.9% 8.2% DGX
Less leveragedLower net debt / EBITDA 2.1x 2.6x DGX
Higher dividend yieldTrailing dividend yield 0.01% 0.00% –
Better 1-year returnPrice return, last 12 months +33.3% +18.1% DGX
Better 5-year returnAnnualised price return, 5 years +11.0%/yr +6.5%/yr DGX
Less volatileAnnualised volatility, 1 year 23.8% 24.1% DGX
Higher overall scoreMean of the five percentile scores vs peers 64/100 56/100 DGX

Percentile Scorecard

DGXLH

Each axis is the mean percentile of its metrics against the company's industry group. 100 is the best in the group, 50 the middle.

Scores by Axis

AxisDGXLH
Valuation 71 #28 of 93 62 #36 of 93
Growth 40 #53 of 88 30 #62 of 88
Profitability 77 #21 of 87 69 #28 of 87
Financial Health 56 #45 of 100 49 #52 of 100
Shareholder Returns 76 #14 of 56 73 #16 of 56
Overall 64 56
  • DGX ranked among 103 companies in Healthcare Providers
  • LH ranked among 103 companies in Healthcare Providers

Price Performance

Price return, split-adjusted, before dividends. Click a name to hide or show it.

Returns

PeriodDGXLHSPY
1 month +2.8%+6.6% -0.8%
3 months +4.7%+9.5% +3.5%
6 months +23.5%+25.3% +7.0%
Year to date +40.0%+31.5% +12.2%
1 year +33.3%+18.1% +13.0%
3 years +90.3%+65.9% +86.3%
3 years, per year +23.9%+18.4% +23.1%
5 years +68.8%+36.9% +68.6%
5 years, per year +11.0%+6.5% +11.0%
10 years +203.1%+203.7% +258.0%
10 years, per year +11.7%+11.8% +13.6%

Risk

MeasureDGXLHSPY
Volatility, 1Y 23.8%24.1% 12.7%
Downside volatility, 1Y 18.8%24.1% 12.7%
Beta vs S&P 500, 1Y -0.090.34 1.00
Return / volatility, 1Y 1.400.75 1.02
Max drawdown, 5Y -30.3%-35.0% -25.4%
From 52-week high -1.8%-2.8% -1.8%
52-week high $247.47$339.40 $779.14
52-week low $173.49$246.64 $631.97

Valuation History

Weekly multiples on trailing twelve-month fundamentals. Negative or extreme readings (a loss year, a collapsed denominator) are left out so the chart stays readable.

MultipleDGXLH
P/E now vs peer median 23.7xmedian 25.1x 26.9xmedian 25.1x
P/S now vs peer median 2.3xmedian 1.6x 1.9xmedian 1.6x
EV/EBITDA now vs peer median 13.6xmedian 14.5x 14.8xmedian 14.5x
P/FCF now vs peer median 19.4xmedian 22.4x 23.1xmedian 22.4x
P/B now vs peer median 3.4xmedian 3.1x 3.1xmedian 3.1x
PEG now vs peer median 1.62median 0.66 2.86median 0.66

Financial History

Reported figures by fiscal period, placed on the calendar year (or quarter) each period ended in, so companies with different fiscal years line up.

Trailing twelve monthsDGXLH
Revenue $11.84B $14.35B
Gross profit $3.92B $4.14B
Operating income $1.72B $1.50B
Net income $1.18B $1.00B
Free cash flow $1.38B $1.16B
EPS (diluted) $10.08 $12.22
Cash & equivalents $797.00M $141.80M
Total debt $5.55B $5.86B
Shares (diluted) 112.00M 82.00M
Enterprise value $24.19B $24.52B

All Metrics

58 metrics · best in bold

Bold marks the best reading: the lowest positive value for multiples, leverage and payout, the highest for everything else. The bar under each value is its percentile against that company's own peers. Hover a value for its rank and the peer median.

Valuation

12 metrics
MetricDGXLH
P/E 23.7x 26.9x
P/FCF 19.4x 23.1x
P/Operating cash flow 13.7x 16.3x
P/S 2.3x 1.9x
P/B 3.4x 3.1x
P/Tangible book 4.2x 5.4x
EV/EBITDA 13.6x 14.8x
EV/EBIT 18.3x 21.7x
EV/Revenue 2.7x 2.3x
EV/FCF 22.9x 28.1x
EV/Operating cash flow 16.1x 19.8x
PEG (3Y EPS CAGR) 1.62 2.86

Growth

14 metrics
MetricDGXLH
Revenue growth (1Y) 9.1% 6.4%
Revenue CAGR (3Y) 8.4% 6.5%
Gross profit growth (1Y) 8.5% 9.2%
Gross profit CAGR (3Y) 8.4% 7.1%
Operating income growth (1Y) 12.5% 25.6%
Operating income CAGR (3Y) 15.1% 14.4%
Net income growth (1Y) 15.0% 31.3%
Net income CAGR (3Y) 12.9% 6.5%
EPS growth (1Y) 17.6% 34.3%
EPS CAGR (3Y) 14.6% 9.4%
Operating cash flow growth (1Y) 3.5% -3.3%
Operating cash flow CAGR (3Y) 21.8% 3.0%
Free cash flow growth (1Y) -1.3% -8.4%
Free cash flow CAGR (3Y) 32.1% 0.5%

Profitability

14 metrics
MetricDGXLH
Gross margin 33.1% 28.9%
EBITDA margin 19.5% 15.3%
Operating margin 14.6% 10.4%
Pretax margin 12.6% 8.6%
Net margin 9.5% 7.0%
FCF margin 11.6% 8.1%
Operating cash flow margin 16.5% 11.4%
Return on equity 15.0% 11.6%
Return on assets 6.9% 5.3%
Return on invested capital 9.9% 8.2%
Return on capital employed 11.3% 9.0%
Asset turnover 0.7x 0.8x
Cash conversion (OCF / net income) 1.7x 1.6x
Stock comp / revenue 0.7% 0.9%

Financial Health

11 metrics
MetricDGXLH
Debt / assets 32.2% 31.6%
Debt / equity 0.7x 0.7x
Net debt / EBITDA 2.1x 2.6x
Debt / FCF 4.0x 5.1x
Liabilities / assets 53.8% 53.6%
Equity / assets 46.2% 46.4%
Interest coverage 6.5x 6.6x
Current ratio 1.7x 1.8x
Quick ratio 1.4x 1.2x
Cash ratio 0.4x 0.1x
Altman Z-score 3.70 3.42

Shareholder Returns

7 metrics
MetricDGXLH
Dividend yield 1.4% 0.9%
Net buyback yield 1.2% 2.4%
Shareholder yield 2.6% 3.3%
Payout ratio (earnings) 31.3% –
Payout ratio (FCF) 26.8% –
Dividend growth (1Y) 6.3% –
Dividend CAGR (3Y) 6.1% –

Analyst Estimates

Solid lines are reported fiscal-year results; dashed lines are the consensus for the years ahead. Hover a year for the analysts' high and low, and how each result compared with its estimate.

ConsensusDGXLH
Forward P/E 22.2xFY2026 19.3xFY2026
EPS, next fiscal year $10.96FY2026 $17.07FY2026
EPS growth, next FY +11.3%FY2026 +3.8%FY2026
EPS growth, the year after +6.8% +9.3%
Revenue, next fiscal year $11.25BFY2026 $14.31BFY2026
Revenue growth, next FY +1.9%FY2026 +2.6%FY2026
Revenue growth, the year after +7.7% +11.9%

Institutional Ownership

13F filings, quarter ended Jun 30, 2026
HoldersDGXLH
Held by institutions 94.4% 97.0%
Institutions holding 1,096 1,051
Change in shares held, QoQ +2.7% +1.6%
Institutions buying 549 465
Institutions selling 341 393
Buyers to sellers 1.61 1.18

Return Correlation

Daily returns, last 12 months

1.00 means two stocks move in lockstep, 0 that they move independently. Pairs below about 0.5 diversify each other.

DGXLH
DGX 1.00 0.74
LH 0.74 1.00

Add a Peer

Largest companies in the same industry

Related Comparisons

Frequently Asked Questions

Which is bigger, DGX and LH?

Labcorp Holdings (LH) is the largest by market capitalisation: Quest Diagnostics (DGX) $26.42B, Labcorp Holdings (LH) $26.77B.

Which stock is cheaper, DGX and LH?

Quest Diagnostics (DGX) trades on the lowest price-to-earnings ratio (Quest Diagnostics (DGX) 23.4x, Labcorp Holdings (LH) 26.7x). On next year's consensus earnings, Labcorp Holdings (LH) is cheapest (Quest Diagnostics (DGX) 22.2x, Labcorp Holdings (LH) 19.3x). A lower multiple can reflect slower expected growth, so read it next to the growth figures.

Which company is growing faster?

Quest Diagnostics (DGX) grew revenue fastest over the trailing twelve months: Quest Diagnostics (DGX) +9.1%, Labcorp Holdings (LH) +6.4%.

Which company is more profitable?

Quest Diagnostics (DGX) has the highest net margin (Quest Diagnostics (DGX) 9.5%, Labcorp Holdings (LH) 7.0%). On return on invested capital, Quest Diagnostics (DGX) leads (Quest Diagnostics (DGX) 9.9%, Labcorp Holdings (LH) 8.2%).

Which stock has performed better?

Over the past year Quest Diagnostics (DGX) returned the most: Quest Diagnostics (DGX) +33.3%, Labcorp Holdings (LH) +18.1%. Over five years, Quest Diagnostics (DGX) compounded fastest (Quest Diagnostics (DGX) +11.0%/yr, Labcorp Holdings (LH) +6.5%/yr). Returns are price only, before dividends.

Which pays a higher dividend?

Only one of these companies pays a dividend: Quest Diagnostics (DGX) 0.01%, Labcorp Holdings (LH) 0.00%. Labcorp Holdings (LH) pays no regular dividend.

Which stock is riskier?

By one-year price volatility, Quest Diagnostics (DGX) has been the steadiest (Quest Diagnostics (DGX) 23.8%, Labcorp Holdings (LH) 24.1%). Volatility measures how widely the price swings, not the risk of the business.

Do DGX and LH move together?

Their daily returns over the past year have a correlation of 0.74, a strong positive relationship. Holding both adds little diversification.

Which is the better stock, DGX and LH?

There is no single answer; it depends on what you are buying for. On the 12 head-to-head measures on this page, Quest Diagnostics (DGX) leads on 9. Business Quant does not give investment advice; use the comparison as a starting point for your own research.

Data from SEC filings, exchange prices and consensus estimates, via Business Quant. Percentile scores compare each company with its own peer group, so two companies' scores are each relative to different peers unless you rank against the whole market. Price returns exclude dividends. Nothing on this page is investment advice.