Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) Shares Acquired by Aviva PLC

Aviva PLC raised its stake in Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT - Free Report) by 4.1% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 1,262,331 shares of the healthcare product maker's stock after buying an additional 49,298 shares during the quarter. Aviva PLC owned about 0.07% of Abbott Laboratories worth $142,782,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in ABT. United Bank increased its position in shares of Abbott Laboratories by 1.8% during the third quarter. United Bank now owns 27,284 shares of the healthcare product maker's stock worth $3,111,000 after acquiring an additional 488 shares during the period. Morse Asset Management Inc purchased a new stake in shares of Abbott Laboratories during the third quarter worth approximately $380,000. Resurgent Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Abbott Laboratories in the third quarter worth approximately $239,000. Wahed Invest LLC lifted its position in shares of Abbott Laboratories by 6.3% during the 3rd quarter. Wahed Invest LLC now owns 41,666 shares of the healthcare product maker's stock worth $4,750,000 after purchasing an additional 2,456 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP increased its holdings in shares of Abbott Laboratories by 1.1% in the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 25,810,977 shares of the healthcare product maker's stock valued at $2,942,709,000 after acquiring an additional 280,441 shares during the last quarter. 75.18% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In related news, SVP Eric Shroff sold 562 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $138.17, for a total transaction of $77,651.54. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 31,970 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,417,294.90. This represents a 1.73 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Lisa D. Earnhardt sold 91,167 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $133.82, for a total value of $12,199,967.94. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 71,928 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $9,625,404.96. The trade was a 55.90 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 116,449 shares of company stock valued at $15,463,316 in the last 90 days. 0.46% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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Abbott Laboratories Price Performance

Shares of ABT traded down $2.90 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $124.15. 3,153,817 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 5,952,673. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $130.88 and a 200 day simple moving average of $121.17. Abbott Laboratories has a fifty-two week low of $99.71 and a fifty-two week high of $141.23. The stock has a market capitalization of $215.31 billion, a PE ratio of 16.25, a price-to-earnings-growth 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.

Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 22nd. The healthcare product maker reported $1.34 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting analysts' consensus estimates of $1.34. The business had revenue of $10.97 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $11.03 billion. Abbott Laboratories had a net margin of 31.95% and a return on equity of 20.74%. The company's revenue was up 7.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.19 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts predict that Abbott Laboratories will post 5.14 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Abbott Laboratories Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, April 15th will be issued a $0.59 dividend. This represents a $2.36 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.90%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, April 15th. Abbott Laboratories's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 30.85%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have weighed in on the stock. Argus raised shares of Abbott Laboratories to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Evercore ISI boosted their target price on Abbott Laboratories to $136.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, January 2nd. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price objective on Abbott Laboratories from $138.00 to $154.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, March 4th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Abbott Laboratories from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Finally, Bank of America raised their price target on Abbott Laboratories from $133.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, March 10th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $137.94.

Abbott Laboratories Company Profile

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.