American Century Companies Inc. Sells 764,962 Shares of Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX)

American Century Companies Inc. cut its position in shares of Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX - Free Report) by 33.4% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 1,524,922 shares of the medical research company's stock after selling 764,962 shares during the quarter. American Century Companies Inc. owned approximately 1.37% of Quest Diagnostics worth $230,050,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Sierra Ocean LLC bought a new stake in Quest Diagnostics in the fourth quarter worth about $33,000. Versant Capital Management Inc increased its position in Quest Diagnostics by 340.4% in the fourth quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 251 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $38,000 after buying an additional 194 shares during the last quarter. First Financial Corp IN purchased a new position in shares of Quest Diagnostics during the 4th quarter valued at $38,000. FPC Investment Advisory Inc. bought a new position in shares of Quest Diagnostics during the 4th quarter worth $45,000. Finally, Global Trust Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in Quest Diagnostics in the 4th quarter worth about $49,000. 88.06% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Quest Diagnostics Stock Down 0.3 %

Shares of DGX traded down $0.49 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $166.13. The company had a trading volume of 871,932 shares, compared to its average volume of 877,390. Quest Diagnostics Incorporated has a 52 week low of $125.42 and a 52 week high of $178.87. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.82, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a current ratio of 1.10. The company has a market capitalization of $18.44 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.60, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.16 and a beta of 0.92. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $166.03 and a 200 day moving average price of $158.87.

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Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The medical research company reported $2.23 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.19 by $0.04. Quest Diagnostics had a net margin of 8.80% and a return on equity of 15.07%. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Quest Diagnostics Incorporated will post 9.7 EPS for the current year.

Quest Diagnostics Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 21st. Shareholders of record on Monday, April 7th will be paid a dividend of $0.80 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, April 7th. This represents a $3.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.93%. This is a boost from Quest Diagnostics's previous quarterly dividend of $0.75. Quest Diagnostics's dividend payout ratio is currently 41.61%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts recently commented on DGX shares. Bank of America raised their price objective on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $179.00 to $182.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, December 13th. Robert W. Baird boosted their price target on shares of Quest Diagnostics from $190.00 to $191.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, March 20th. Leerink Partners raised shares of Quest Diagnostics from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and raised their target price for the company from $169.00 to $174.00 in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Barclays lifted their price target on Quest Diagnostics from $168.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Leerink Partnrs upgraded shares of Quest Diagnostics from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $178.38.

Insider Buying and Selling at Quest Diagnostics

In other Quest Diagnostics news, EVP Catherine T. Doherty sold 5,370 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $174.13, for a total transaction of $935,078.10. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 68,068 shares in the company, valued at $11,852,680.84. This represents a 7.31 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director Vicky B. Gregg sold 1,250 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $164.57, for a total value of $205,712.50. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 16,867 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,775,802.19. This represents a 6.90 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 14,157 shares of company stock valued at $2,423,755. Insiders own 0.79% of the company's stock.

About Quest Diagnostics

Quest Diagnostics Incorporated provides diagnostic testing and services in the United States and internationally. The company develops and delivers diagnostic information services, such as routine, non-routine and advanced clinical testing, anatomic pathology testing, and other diagnostic information services.