Legal & General Group Plc decreased its position in shares of Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT - Free Report) by 19.1% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 11,530,938 shares of the healthcare product maker's stock after selling 2,727,869 shares during the quarter. Legal & General Group Plc owned approximately 0.66% of Abbott Laboratories worth $1,304,264,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.
Other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Abbott Laboratories during the 4th quarter worth approximately $2,373,461,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in Abbott Laboratories during the 4th quarter worth $635,056,000. Invesco Ltd. raised its position in shares of Abbott Laboratories by 27.6% during the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 9,018,429 shares of the healthcare product maker's stock valued at $1,020,074,000 after acquiring an additional 1,948,329 shares during the last quarter. Jennison Associates LLC boosted its position in shares of Abbott Laboratories by 22,372.2% in the 4th quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 1,201,364 shares of the healthcare product maker's stock worth $135,886,000 after purchasing an additional 1,196,018 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. grew its stake in shares of Abbott Laboratories by 13.7% during the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 9,764,061 shares of the healthcare product maker's stock worth $1,144,818,000 after purchasing an additional 1,180,040 shares during the period. 75.18% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.
Analysts Set New Price Targets
Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Barclays restated an "overweight" rating and set a $158.00 target price (up from $149.00) on shares of Abbott Laboratories in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Argus upgraded shares of Abbott Laboratories to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their target price on Abbott Laboratories from $138.00 to $154.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, March 4th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on Abbott Laboratories from $133.00 to $136.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Finally, Citigroup lifted their price objective on Abbott Laboratories from $135.00 to $160.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, March 4th. Four equities research 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's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $137.94.
Get Our Latest Analysis on Abbott Laboratories
Insider Activity
In other Abbott Laboratories news, EVP Lisa D. Earnhardt sold 91,167 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 71,928 shares in the company, valued at $9,625,404.96. This trade represents a 55.90 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Andrea F. Wainer sold 949 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $138.17, for a total value of $131,123.33. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 74,381 shares of the company's stock, valued at $10,277,222.77. This trade represents a 1.26 % 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 quarter. Company insiders own 0.46% of the company's stock.
Abbott Laboratories Stock Up 1.9 %
ABT traded up $2.34 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $126.84. 7,355,410 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 6,003,334. 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 has a 1-year low of $99.71 and a 1-year high of $141.23. The stock's 50-day moving average is $130.75 and its two-hundred day moving average is $121.34. The stock has a market cap of $219.98 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.58, a PEG ratio of 2.52 and a beta of 0.80.
Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 22nd. The healthcare product maker reported $1.34 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $1.34. Abbott Laboratories had a return on equity of 20.74% and a net margin of 31.95%. The company had revenue of $10.97 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $11.03 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.19 EPS. Abbott Laboratories's revenue for the quarter was up 7.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts predict that Abbott Laboratories will post 5.14 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.
Abbott Laboratories Announces Dividend
The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, April 15th will be paid a $0.59 dividend. This represents a $2.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.86%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 15th. Abbott Laboratories's dividend payout ratio is currently 30.85%.
Abbott Laboratories Company Profile
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Free Report)
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.
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