Quest Diagnostics to buy back $900 million of its own shares in first half

Quest Diagnostics Inc. /zigman2/quotes/201001842/composite DGX -0.94% said Thursday it will buy back $900 million of its own shares in the first half of 2021. In a statement released ahead of an investor day, the company said its long-term outlook is to achieve a compound annual growth rate of 4% to 5% for adjusted per-share earnings in the period from 2022 to 2024, and for the total company to grow 7% to 9%. "Earnings from COVID-19 testing continue to help fund investments in the business, which will enable us to further accelerate growth and drive operational excellence," Chief Executive Steve Rusckowski said in a statement. "Our base business is poised to fully recover by the end of 2021." The company is still expecting first-half EPS to range from $5.07 to $6.07 and for adjusted EPS to range from $5.90 to $6.90. It expects revenue to range from $4.85 billion to $5.15 billion in the period. Officials will offer detail on the company's capital deployment strategy at the virtual meeting. Shares were not yet active premarket, but have gained 17% in the last 12 months, while the S&P 500 /zigman2/quotes/210599714/realtime SPX -4.04% has gained 42%.