Abbott Laboratories $ABT Stock Acquired by Maryland State Retirement & Pension System

Maryland State Retirement & Pension System lifted its stake in shares of Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) by 15.0% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 106,690 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock after buying an additional 13,924 shares during the period. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System’s holdings in Abbott Laboratories were worth $10,544,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Ritholtz Wealth Management raised its stake in shares of Abbott Laboratories by 13.2% in the third quarter. Ritholtz Wealth Management now owns 53,123 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock worth $5,250,000 after purchasing an additional 6,196 shares during the last quarter. Joel Isaacson & Co. LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Abbott Laboratories by 24.6% during the third quarter. Joel Isaacson & Co. LLC now owns 5,948 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock worth $588,000 after purchasing an additional 1,175 shares during the period. Jacobi Capital Management LLC boosted its position in Abbott Laboratories by 1.6% in the third quarter. Jacobi Capital Management LLC now owns 32,477 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock valued at $3,210,000 after buying an additional 497 shares during the last quarter. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. boosted its position in Abbott Laboratories by 2,211.2% in the third quarter. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. now owns 248,989 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock valued at $24,608,000 after buying an additional 238,216 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Riverbridge Partners LLC increased its holdings in Abbott Laboratories by 26.5% in the 3rd quarter. Riverbridge Partners LLC now owns 22,375 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock worth $2,211,000 after buying an additional 4,692 shares during the period. 75.18% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Abbott Laboratories Stock Performance

Shares of ABT stock opened at $109.38 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $189.43 billion, a PE ratio of 40.81, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.94 and a beta of 0.54. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $104.00 and a 200-day simple moving average of $101.74. The company has a quick ratio of 1.00, a current ratio of 1.45 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57. Abbott Laboratories has a 52-week low of $81.97 and a 52-week high of $132.02.

Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, October 21st. The healthcare product maker reported $1.42 EPS for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $1.42. The firm had revenue of $13.01 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $12.99 billion. Abbott Laboratories had a return on equity of 18.04% and a net margin of 9.75%. Abbott Laboratories’s revenue for the quarter was up 14.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.30 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts expect that Abbott Laboratories will post 5.52 EPS for the current year.

Abbott Laboratories Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 16th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, October 15th will be given a $0.63 dividend. This represents a $2.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.3%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, October 15th. Abbott Laboratories’s dividend payout ratio is currently 94.03%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on the stock. TD Cowen reduced their price target on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $135.00 to $118.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, October 22nd. Barclays assumed coverage on shares of Abbott Laboratories in a research note on Wednesday, October 7th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $120.00 price objective for the company. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $112.00 to $119.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, October 22nd. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Abbott Laboratories from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research note on Friday, September 18th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $120.00 to $118.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, October 22nd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-one have issued a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $118.32.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP Mary Moreland sold 3,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, November 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $116.00, for a total transaction of $406,000.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 100,791 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $11,691,756. This trade represents a 3.36% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.46% of the company’s stock.

Abbott Laboratories Company Profile

Abbott Laboratories is a global healthcare company that develops, manufactures and markets medical devices, diagnostic tests, nutritional products and branded generic medicines. Its products serve patients and healthcare professionals in hospitals, clinics and other care settings. Abbott’s offerings include the FreeStyle Libre continuous glucose monitoring system, cardiovascular and other medical devices, laboratory and rapid diagnostic tests, and nutrition brands such as Ensure and Similac. Its established pharmaceuticals business sells branded generic medicines in markets outside the United States.