Two Sigma Securities LLC Lowers Stake in Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT)

Two Sigma Securities LLC decreased its stake in shares of Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT - Free Report) by 58.0% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 3,026 shares of the healthcare product maker's stock after selling 4,174 shares during the quarter. Two Sigma Securities LLC's holdings in Abbott Laboratories were worth $342,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Morse Asset Management Inc purchased a new stake in shares of Abbott Laboratories during the third quarter valued at $380,000. Tudor Financial Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Abbott Laboratories during the 3rd quarter valued at $302,000. Anchor Investment Management LLC increased its position in Abbott Laboratories by 2.9% in the third quarter. Anchor Investment Management LLC now owns 54,237 shares of the healthcare product maker's stock worth $6,184,000 after buying an additional 1,509 shares in the last quarter. Fulcrum Equity Management purchased a new stake in Abbott Laboratories in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $239,000. Finally, Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB raised its position in shares of Abbott Laboratories by 32.6% during the 3rd quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB now owns 332,189 shares of the healthcare product maker's stock valued at $37,873,000 after purchasing an additional 81,669 shares during the period. 75.18% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Abbott Laboratories

In related news, EVP Lisa D. Earnhardt sold 91,167 shares of Abbott Laboratories stock in a transaction dated 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 owns 71,928 shares in the company, valued at $9,625,404.96. This trade represents a 55.90 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, SVP Eric Shroff sold 562 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $138.17, for a total transaction of $77,651.54. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 31,970 shares in the company, valued at $4,417,294.90. This represents a 1.73 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 116,449 shares of company stock worth $15,463,316. 0.46% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Abbott Laboratories Stock Down 0.4 %

NYSE ABT opened at $128.90 on Monday. 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 52 week low of $99.71 and a 52 week high of $141.23. The firm has a market capitalization of $223.55 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.85, a PEG ratio of 2.52 and a beta of 0.80. The company has a fifty day moving average of $130.54 and a two-hundred day moving average of $122.51.

Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT - Get Free Report) last posted 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. The company had revenue of $10.36 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $10.38 billion. Abbott Laboratories had a net margin of 31.95% and a return on equity of 20.74%. On average, analysts predict that Abbott Laboratories will post 5.14 earnings per share for the current year.

Abbott Laboratories Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced 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. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, April 15th. This represents a $2.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.83%. Abbott Laboratories's payout ratio is 30.61%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently issued reports on ABT shares. Stifel Nicolaus increased their target price on Abbott Laboratories from $135.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 17th. Argus raised shares of Abbott Laboratories to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Raymond James boosted their target price on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $132.00 to $142.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, April 17th. Morgan Stanley raised their target price 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. Finally, Citigroup boosted their price target on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $135.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 4th. Four investment 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 company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Abbott Laboratories currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus 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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.