Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) Shares Acquired by First Trust Advisors LP

First Trust Advisors LP raised its holdings in Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT - Free Report) by 20.9% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 719,317 shares of the healthcare product maker's stock after acquiring an additional 124,259 shares during the period. First Trust Advisors LP's holdings in Abbott Laboratories were worth $81,362,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. Redwood Park Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Abbott Laboratories during the 4th quarter worth about $25,000. Noble Wealth Management PBC purchased a new stake in Abbott Laboratories in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. NewSquare Capital LLC lifted its stake in Abbott Laboratories by 78.4% during the 4th quarter. NewSquare Capital LLC now owns 239 shares of the healthcare product maker's stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 105 shares in the last quarter. WealthTrak Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Abbott Laboratories in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Finally, Rialto Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Abbott Laboratories in the fourth quarter worth $29,000. 75.18% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Daniel Gesua Sive Salvadori sold 23,771 shares of the company's 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 completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 125,697 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $16,152,064.50. This represents a 15.90 % 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 business's stock in a transaction on 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. This represents a 55.90 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 116,449 shares of company stock worth $15,463,316. 0.46% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Abbott Laboratories Price Performance

NYSE ABT traded down $0.49 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $128.90. The company's stock had a trading volume of 4,849,055 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,051,447. 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 stock has a market cap of $223.55 billion, a PE ratio of 16.85, a PEG ratio of 2.52 and a beta of 0.80. The company's 50-day moving average is $130.57 and its two-hundred day moving average is $122.31. Abbott Laboratories has a fifty-two week low of $99.71 and a fifty-two week high of $141.23.

Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 16th. The healthcare product maker reported $1.09 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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 business had revenue of $10.36 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $10.38 billion. Analysts forecast that Abbott Laboratories will post 5.14 EPS for the current year.

Abbott Laboratories Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, April 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.59 per share. This represents a $2.36 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.83%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, April 15th. Abbott Laboratories's payout ratio is 30.61%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ABT has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Barclays boosted their price objective on Abbott Laboratories from $158.00 to $159.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 17th. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their target price on Abbott Laboratories from $135.00 to $137.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 17th. Piper Sandler reiterated an "overweight" rating and set a $145.00 price target (up previously from $133.00) on shares of Abbott Laboratories in a research note on Thursday, April 17th. 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. Finally, Raymond James lifted their target price on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $132.00 to $142.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, April 17th. Four 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 stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Abbott Laboratories currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $142.59.

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.