Steph & Co. Trims Stock Position in Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT)

Steph & Co. decreased its holdings in Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) by 5.7% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 4,372 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock after selling 264 shares during the quarter. Steph & Co.’s holdings in Abbott Laboratories were worth $481,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Key Financial Inc increased its position in Abbott Laboratories by 1.9% in the fourth quarter. Key Financial Inc now owns 15,067 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock worth $1,658,000 after buying an additional 281 shares in the last quarter. United Super Pty Ltd in its capacity as Trustee for the Construction & Building Unions Superannuation Fund increased its holdings in Abbott Laboratories by 9.7% in the 4th quarter. United Super Pty Ltd in its capacity as Trustee for the Construction & Building Unions Superannuation Fund now owns 695,644 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock worth $76,570,000 after acquiring an additional 61,393 shares in the last quarter. Oakworth Capital Inc. raised its stake in Abbott Laboratories by 5.9% during the 4th quarter. Oakworth Capital Inc. now owns 5,560 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock worth $612,000 after acquiring an additional 311 shares during the period. TRUE Private Wealth Advisors lifted its holdings in Abbott Laboratories by 16.0% during the fourth quarter. TRUE Private Wealth Advisors now owns 6,010 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock valued at $662,000 after purchasing an additional 830 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Scissortail Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Abbott Laboratories in the 4th quarter worth $1,778,000. 75.18% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Abbott Laboratories

In other news, EVP Daniel Gesua Sive Salvadori sold 963 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $118.50, for a total transaction of $114,115.50. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 125,697 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $14,895,094.50. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In related news, EVP Daniel Gesua Sive Salvadori sold 963 shares of Abbott Laboratories stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $118.50, for a total value of $114,115.50. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 125,697 shares in the company, valued at $14,895,094.50. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, VP John A. Jr. Mccoy sold 472 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $118.50, for a total transaction of $55,932.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 18,760 shares in the company, valued at $2,223,060. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 56,435 shares of company stock worth $6,451,298. Insiders own 0.47% of the company’s stock.

Abbott Laboratories Trading Down 3.0 %

NYSE:ABT traded down $3.31 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $105.90. 11,989,756 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 5,677,675. The firm has a market capitalization of $183.76 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.50, a P/E/G ratio of 2.62 and a beta of 0.74. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $114.57 and its 200-day moving average is $107.60. Abbott Laboratories has a 12-month low of $89.67 and a 12-month high of $121.64. The company has a current ratio of 1.64, a quick ratio of 1.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35.

Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 17th. The healthcare product maker reported $0.98 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.95 by $0.03. Abbott Laboratories had a net margin of 14.27% and a return on equity of 20.65%. The firm had revenue of $9.96 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $9.88 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.03 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Abbott Laboratories will post 4.62 EPS for the current year.

Abbott Laboratories Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, April 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.55 per share. This represents a $2.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.08%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 12th. Abbott Laboratories’s dividend payout ratio is currently 67.48%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently commented on the company. Evercore ISI boosted their price objective on Abbott Laboratories from $120.00 to $125.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 4th. Barclays increased their price objective on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $133.00 to $141.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, January 26th. TheStreet raised shares of Abbott Laboratories from a “c+” rating to a “b-” rating in a report on Thursday, December 21st. Raymond James raised their target price on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $124.00 to $127.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 25th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $128.00 price target on shares of Abbott Laboratories in a research note on Wednesday, February 14th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Abbott Laboratories has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $122.14.

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.