Natixis Sells 110,264 Shares of Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT)

Natixis trimmed its holdings in Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT - Free Report) by 26.9% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 299,275 shares of the healthcare product maker's stock after selling 110,264 shares during the period. Natixis' holdings in Abbott Laboratories were worth $33,851,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Abbott Laboratories during the 4th quarter valued at $2,373,461,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Abbott Laboratories in the fourth quarter worth about $635,056,000. Capital International Investors boosted its position in shares of Abbott Laboratories by 3.4% in the fourth quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 67,972,953 shares of the healthcare product maker's stock valued at $7,688,160,000 after acquiring an additional 2,229,026 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. increased its holdings in Abbott Laboratories by 27.6% during the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 9,018,429 shares of the healthcare product maker's stock worth $1,020,074,000 after acquiring an additional 1,948,329 shares during the period. Finally, APG Asset Management N.V. lifted its stake in Abbott Laboratories by 1,480.2% in the 4th quarter. APG Asset Management N.V. now owns 1,551,626 shares of the healthcare product maker's stock worth $169,488,000 after purchasing an additional 1,453,436 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 75.18% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on ABT shares. Raymond James upped their price target on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $132.00 to $142.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, April 17th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $136.00 to $147.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 17th. UBS Group boosted their price target on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $146.00 to $148.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $158.00 to $159.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, April 17th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group increased their target price on Abbott Laboratories from $135.00 to $137.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 17th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $142.59.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Lisa D. Earnhardt sold 91,167 shares of Abbott Laboratories stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $133.82, for a total transaction of $12,199,967.94. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 71,928 shares of the company's stock, valued at $9,625,404.96. This trade represents a 55.90 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Daniel Gesua Sive Salvadori sold 23,771 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $128.50, for a total transaction of $3,054,573.50. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 125,697 shares of the company's stock, valued at $16,152,064.50. This represents a 15.90 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 116,449 shares of company stock valued at $15,463,316. Corporate insiders own 0.46% of the company's stock.

Abbott Laboratories Trading Down 1.4 %

Shares of NYSE:ABT traded down $1.90 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $129.83. 8,776,995 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 6,041,463. The company has a quick ratio of 1.14, a current ratio of 1.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32. The stock has a market capitalization of $225.17 billion, a PE ratio of 16.97, a P/E/G ratio of 2.52 and a beta of 0.80. Abbott Laboratories has a one year low of $99.71 and a one year high of $141.23. The business's 50 day moving average is $130.61 and its two-hundred day moving average is $122.15.

Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 16th. The healthcare product maker reported $1.09 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.07 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $10.36 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $10.38 billion. Abbott Laboratories had a return on equity of 20.74% and a net margin of 31.95%. As a group, research analysts forecast that Abbott Laboratories will post 5.14 earnings per share for the current year.

Abbott Laboratories Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, April 15th will be given a $0.59 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, April 15th. This represents a $2.36 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.82%. Abbott Laboratories's dividend payout ratio is 30.61%.

About Abbott Laboratories

Abbott Laboratories, together with its subsidiaries, discovers, develops, manufactures, and sells health care products worldwide. It operates in four segments: Established Pharmaceutical Products, Diagnostic Products, Nutritional Products, and Medical Devices. The company provides generic pharmaceuticals for the treatment of pancreatic exocrine insufficiency, irritable bowel syndrome or biliary spasm, intrahepatic cholestasis or depressive symptoms, gynecological disorder, hormone replacement therapy, dyslipidemia, hypertension, hypothyroidism, Ménière's disease and vestibular vertigo, pain, fever, inflammation, and migraine, as well as provides anti-infective clarithromycin, influenza vaccine, and products to regulate physiological rhythm of the colon.