SYM FINANCIAL Corp Takes $222,000 Position in Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT)

SYM FINANCIAL Corp purchased a new position in Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 2,015 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock, valued at approximately $222,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Alliance Wealth Advisors LLC UT boosted its holdings in shares of Abbott Laboratories by 0.4% in the fourth quarter. Alliance Wealth Advisors LLC UT now owns 25,085 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock valued at $2,761,000 after purchasing an additional 92 shares during the period. Rappaport Reiches Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Abbott Laboratories by 0.8% during the fourth quarter. Rappaport Reiches Capital Management LLC now owns 12,287 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock valued at $1,352,000 after buying an additional 94 shares during the period. Avion Wealth raised its holdings in shares of Abbott Laboratories by 19.4% in the fourth quarter. Avion Wealth now owns 591 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock valued at $65,000 after acquiring an additional 96 shares in the last quarter. Renaissance Investment Group LLC lifted its stake in Abbott Laboratories by 0.7% in the fourth quarter. Renaissance Investment Group LLC now owns 14,204 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock worth $1,563,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares during the period. Finally, Drive Wealth Management LLC increased its position in Abbott Laboratories by 1.5% during the 4th quarter. Drive Wealth Management LLC now owns 6,712 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock valued at $739,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 75.18% of the company’s stock.

Abbott Laboratories Stock Performance

NYSE:ABT traded down $0.02 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $105.90. 3,610,492 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 5,320,693. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a current ratio of 1.64 and a quick ratio of 1.16. Abbott Laboratories has a 52-week low of $89.67 and a 52-week high of $121.64. The stock has a market capitalization of $183.76 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.99, a PEG ratio of 2.55 and a beta of 0.76. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $112.52 and its 200-day moving average price is $108.51.

Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 17th. The healthcare product maker reported $0.98 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.96 by $0.02. Abbott Laboratories had a net margin of 13.96% and a return on equity of 20.32%. The firm had revenue of $9.96 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.88 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.03 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 2.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts forecast that Abbott Laboratories will post 4.62 earnings per share for the current year.

Abbott Laboratories Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 15th. Investors of record on Monday, April 15th will be issued a $0.55 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 12th. This represents a $2.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.08%. Abbott Laboratories’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 68.54%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Daniel Gesua Sive Salvadori sold 963 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, March 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $118.50, for a total value of $114,115.50. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 125,697 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $14,895,094.50. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In related news, VP John A. Jr. Mccoy sold 472 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, March 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $118.50, for a total transaction of $55,932.00. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 18,760 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,223,060. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Daniel Gesua Sive Salvadori sold 963 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $118.50, for a total transaction of $114,115.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 125,697 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $14,895,094.50. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 13,935 shares of company stock valued at $1,670,048. 1.10% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on ABT shares. Barclays dropped their price objective on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $141.00 to $140.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 22nd. Citigroup lifted their price target on Abbott Laboratories from $126.00 to $128.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 3rd. Raymond James restated a “buy” rating and set a $124.00 price objective on shares of Abbott Laboratories in a research note on Wednesday, April 24th. Evercore ISI lifted their target price on Abbott Laboratories from $120.00 to $125.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 4th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada decreased their price target on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $128.00 to $125.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 18th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $121.50.

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.