320,823 Shares in Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) Bought by BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S

BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S acquired a new position in Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 320,823 shares of the healthcare product maker's stock, valued at approximately $36,288,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Cape Investment Advisory Inc. raised its stake in shares of Abbott Laboratories by 6.6% during the fourth quarter. Cape Investment Advisory Inc. now owns 1,236 shares of the healthcare product maker's stock worth $140,000 after purchasing an additional 76 shares during the last quarter. Capital Square LLC increased its stake in Abbott Laboratories by 2.7% in the 4th quarter. Capital Square LLC now owns 2,941 shares of the healthcare product maker's stock valued at $368,000 after buying an additional 77 shares during the period. Cyrus J. Lawrence LLC lifted its stake in shares of Abbott Laboratories by 9.0% in the 4th quarter. Cyrus J. Lawrence LLC now owns 954 shares of the healthcare product maker's stock worth $107,000 after acquiring an additional 79 shares during the period. Jacobson & Schmitt Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Abbott Laboratories by 2.9% in the fourth quarter. Jacobson & Schmitt Advisors LLC now owns 2,827 shares of the healthcare product maker's stock valued at $320,000 after acquiring an additional 80 shares in the last quarter. Finally, LMG Wealth Partners LLC increased its stake in shares of Abbott Laboratories by 3.8% during the fourth quarter. LMG Wealth Partners LLC now owns 2,161 shares of the healthcare product maker's stock worth $244,000 after acquiring an additional 80 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 75.18% of the company's stock.

Abbott Laboratories Trading Up 0.1 %

Shares of NYSE:ABT traded up $0.15 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $129.99. The company's stock had a trading volume of 3,283,082 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,040,012. The firm has a market cap of $225.44 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.99, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.52 and a beta of 0.80. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $130.59 and a 200 day moving average price of $122.20. Abbott Laboratories has a 1 year low of $99.71 and a 1 year 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.

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

Abbott Laboratories Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed 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 of this dividend 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 presently 30.61%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, SVP Eric Shroff sold 562 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $138.17, for a total value of $77,651.54. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 31,970 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,417,294.90. This represents a 1.73 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Daniel Gesua Sive Salvadori sold 23,771 shares of Abbott Laboratories 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 sale, the executive vice president now owns 125,697 shares in the company, 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 ninety days, insiders have sold 116,449 shares of company stock valued at $15,463,316. 0.46% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on ABT shares. Argus raised Abbott Laboratories to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Raymond James lifted their price target on Abbott Laboratories from $132.00 to $142.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 17th. Evercore ISI raised their target price on Abbott Laboratories to $136.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, January 2nd. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their target price on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $140.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 17th. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $117.00 to $127.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 17th. Four 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 company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $142.59.

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.