Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) Stock Price Up 4.9% After Strong Earnings

Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT - Get Free Report)'s share price rose 4.9% during trading on Wednesday following a better than expected earnings announcement. The company traded as high as $133.26 and last traded at $132.36. Approximately 2,236,510 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 68% from the average daily volume of 7,046,563 shares. The stock had previously closed at $126.22.

The healthcare product maker reported $1.09 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.07 by $0.02. Abbott Laboratories had a return on equity of 20.74% and a net margin of 31.95%. The company had revenue of $10.36 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $10.38 billion.

Abbott Laboratories Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, April 15th will be given a $0.59 dividend. This represents a $2.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.83%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 15th. Abbott Laboratories's payout ratio is currently 30.61%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have weighed in on ABT shares. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price objective on Abbott Laboratories from $135.00 to $137.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $117.00 to $127.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Thursday. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price target on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $140.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday. Piper Sandler reiterated an "overweight" rating and set a $145.00 price objective (up from $133.00) on shares of Abbott Laboratories in a research report on Thursday. Finally, Argus upgraded shares of Abbott Laboratories to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $142.59.

Insider Transactions at Abbott Laboratories

In related news, SVP Eric Shroff sold 562 shares of Abbott Laboratories stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $138.17, for a total transaction of $77,651.54. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 31,970 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,417,294.90. The trade was a 1.73 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Andrea F. Wainer sold 949 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $138.17, for a total transaction of $131,123.33. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 74,381 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,277,222.77. The trade was a 1.26 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 116,449 shares of company stock valued at $15,463,316. Company insiders own 0.46% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Abbott Laboratories

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Redwood Park Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Abbott Laboratories in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Noble Wealth Management PBC acquired a new stake in Abbott Laboratories during the fourth quarter worth about $26,000. NewSquare Capital LLC raised its position in shares of Abbott Laboratories by 78.4% during the 4th quarter. NewSquare Capital LLC now owns 239 shares of the healthcare product maker's stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 105 shares during the period. WealthTrak Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in Abbott Laboratories in the fourth quarter valued at about $28,000. Finally, Rialto Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Abbott Laboratories during the fourth quarter worth $29,000. 75.18% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Abbott Laboratories Stock Down 1.4 %

The stock has a market cap of $224.09 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.89, a PEG ratio of 2.52 and a beta of 0.80. 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 business's fifty day moving average is $130.62 and its two-hundred day moving average is $121.96.

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.