Bessemer Group Inc. Sells 31,899 Shares of Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT)

Bessemer Group Inc. decreased its position in shares of Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT - Free Report) by 2.4% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,288,279 shares of the healthcare product maker's stock after selling 31,899 shares during the period. Bessemer Group Inc. owned about 0.07% of Abbott Laboratories worth $145,716,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Groupama Asset Managment grew its holdings in Abbott Laboratories by 22.2% during the 3rd quarter. Groupama Asset Managment now owns 228,448 shares of the healthcare product maker's stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 41,557 shares during the last quarter. Noble Wealth Management PBC bought a new stake in shares of Abbott Laboratories during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. NewSquare Capital LLC increased its holdings in shares of Abbott Laboratories by 78.4% in the fourth quarter. NewSquare Capital LLC now owns 239 shares of the healthcare product maker's stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 105 shares in the last quarter. WealthTrak Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in Abbott Laboratories during the 4th quarter worth $28,000. Finally, Rialto Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Abbott Laboratories in the 4th quarter valued at $29,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.18% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In other Abbott Laboratories news, EVP Lisa D. Earnhardt sold 91,167 shares of the business's 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 sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 71,928 shares of the company's stock, valued at $9,625,404.96. The trade was a 55.90 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, SVP Eric Shroff sold 562 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $138.17, for a total value 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 $4,417,294.90. The trade was a 1.73 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 116,449 shares of company stock worth $15,463,316 over the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.46% of the company's stock.

Abbott Laboratories Stock Up 2.6 %

Shares of ABT stock opened at $127.13 on Thursday. Abbott Laboratories has a 12-month low of $99.71 and a 12-month high of $141.23. 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 firm has a fifty day moving average of $130.88 and a 200-day moving average of $121.17. The company has a market capitalization of $220.48 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.62, a P/E/G ratio of 2.52 and a beta of 0.80.

Remove Ads

Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 22nd. The healthcare product maker reported $1.34 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $1.34. The firm had revenue of $10.97 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $11.03 billion. Abbott Laboratories had a return on equity of 20.74% and a net margin of 31.95%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 7.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.19 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Abbott Laboratories will post 5.14 earnings per share 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. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, April 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.59 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, April 15th. This represents a $2.36 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.86%. Abbott Laboratories's dividend payout ratio is currently 30.85%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on ABT shares. Evercore ISI upped their price target on Abbott Laboratories to $136.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, January 2nd. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their target price on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $138.00 to $154.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 4th. Royal Bank of Canada reissued an "outperform" rating and set a $135.00 price target on shares of Abbott Laboratories in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. Bank of America raised their price objective on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $133.00 to $150.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, March 10th. Finally, Citigroup upped their target price on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $135.00 to $160.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 4th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock 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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.