Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) Shares Sold by Dearborn Partners LLC

Dearborn Partners LLC trimmed its holdings in shares of Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT - Free Report) by 1.3% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 282,078 shares of the healthcare product maker's stock after selling 3,619 shares during the period. Dearborn Partners LLC's holdings in Abbott Laboratories were worth $31,906,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Groupama Asset Managment raised its stake in shares of 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 buying an additional 41,557 shares in the last quarter. Noble Wealth Management PBC purchased a new position in Abbott Laboratories in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $26,000. NewSquare Capital LLC increased its stake in Abbott Laboratories by 78.4% in the 4th 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. Rialto Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Abbott Laboratories in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Finally, Peterson Financial Group Inc. purchased a new position in Abbott Laboratories in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $32,000. 75.18% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP Andrea F. Wainer sold 949 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 $131,123.33. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 74,381 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,277,222.77. This trade represents a 1.26 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Daniel Gesua Sive Salvadori sold 23,771 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated 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 directly owns 125,697 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $16,152,064.50. This represents a 15.90 % 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. 0.47% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Remove Ads

Abbott Laboratories Stock Down 1.5 %

Shares of NYSE ABT traded down $1.98 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $130.68. 4,029,399 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 5,542,856. Abbott Laboratories has a 52-week low of $99.71 and a 52-week high of $141.23. The stock has a market capitalization of $226.64 billion, a PE ratio of 17.08, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.52 and a beta of 0.69. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a current ratio of 1.60. The business's fifty day moving average price is $126.23 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $119.13.

Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, January 22nd. The healthcare product maker reported $1.34 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting analysts' consensus estimates of $1.34. Abbott Laboratories had a return on equity of 20.74% and a net margin of 31.95%. The business had revenue of $10.97 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $11.03 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.19 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 7.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts forecast that Abbott Laboratories will post 5.14 EPS for the current year.

Abbott Laboratories Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, April 15th will be issued a $0.59 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 15th. This represents a $2.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.81%. Abbott Laboratories's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 30.85%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have commented on the company. Argus upgraded Abbott Laboratories to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Citigroup increased their target price on Abbott Laboratories from $135.00 to $160.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, March 4th. UBS Group increased their target price on Abbott Laboratories from $146.00 to $148.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on Abbott Laboratories from $133.00 to $136.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus raised their price objective on Abbott Laboratories from $130.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $137.94.

Abbott Laboratories 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.