Rathbones Group PLC lifted its position in Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT - Free Report) by 3.3% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 2,626,106 shares of the healthcare product maker's stock after acquiring an additional 84,300 shares during the quarter. Abbott Laboratories accounts for approximately 1.4% of Rathbones Group PLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 13th largest holding. Rathbones Group PLC owned approximately 0.15% of Abbott Laboratories worth $297,039,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.
Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in ABT. United Bank boosted its position in Abbott Laboratories by 1.8% during the 3rd quarter. United Bank now owns 27,284 shares of the healthcare product maker's stock valued at $3,111,000 after acquiring an additional 488 shares in the last quarter. Morse Asset Management Inc purchased a new stake in shares of Abbott Laboratories during the 3rd quarter worth $380,000. EP Wealth Advisors LLC grew its stake in Abbott Laboratories by 5.3% in the third quarter. EP Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 56,097 shares of the healthcare product maker's stock valued at $6,396,000 after purchasing an additional 2,809 shares during the last quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC raised its holdings in Abbott Laboratories by 45.7% in the third quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 571 shares of the healthcare product maker's stock worth $65,000 after purchasing an additional 179 shares in the last quarter. Finally, First National Bank of Omaha lifted its position in shares of Abbott Laboratories by 3.0% during the third quarter. First National Bank of Omaha now owns 193,931 shares of the healthcare product maker's stock valued at $22,110,000 after buying an additional 5,683 shares during the last quarter. 75.18% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.
Abbott Laboratories Stock Performance
Shares of ABT stock traded up $2.34 on Friday, hitting $126.84. The company had a trading volume of 7,355,410 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,003,334. Abbott Laboratories has a twelve month low of $99.71 and a twelve 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 market cap of $219.98 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.58, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.52 and a beta of 0.80. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $130.75 and a 200-day moving average price of $121.34.
Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 22nd. The healthcare product maker reported $1.34 EPS for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $1.34. The business had revenue of $10.97 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $11.03 billion. Abbott Laboratories had a return on equity of 20.74% and a net margin of 31.95%. The business's quarterly revenue was up 7.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm 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 Dividend Announcement
The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, April 15th will be issued a $0.59 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, April 15th. This represents a $2.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.86%. Abbott Laboratories's payout ratio is 30.85%.
Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth
A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on ABT shares. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and issued a $135.00 price objective on shares of Abbott Laboratories in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st. Citigroup upped their price target on Abbott Laboratories from $135.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 4th. 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 research report on Thursday, January 23rd. Barclays reaffirmed 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. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus raised their price target on Abbott Laboratories from $130.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $137.94.
Check Out Our Latest Report on ABT
Insiders Place Their Bets
In other news, EVP Lisa D. Earnhardt sold 91,167 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $133.82, for a total transaction of $12,199,967.94. Following the completion of the transaction, 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 position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Andrea F. Wainer sold 949 shares of Abbott Laboratories stock in a transaction on Monday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $138.17, for a total transaction of $131,123.33. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 74,381 shares in the company, valued at $10,277,222.77. This represents a 1.26 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 116,449 shares of company stock worth $15,463,316. Company insiders own 0.46% of the company's stock.
About Abbott Laboratories
(
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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