Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) Shares Gap Up – Still a Buy?

Shares of Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) gapped up prior to trading on Friday . The stock had previously closed at $113.37, but opened at $119.75. Abbott Laboratories shares last traded at $118.79, with a volume of 1,363,795 shares.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have commented on ABT. Sanford C. Bernstein raised their target price on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $133.00 to $138.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. Edward Jones downgraded Abbott Laboratories from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 30th. Raymond James restated a “buy” rating and issued a $129.00 price objective (up previously from $122.00) on shares of Abbott Laboratories in a report on Monday, October 14th. Oppenheimer started coverage on shares of Abbott Laboratories in a report on Tuesday, October 8th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $130.00 price target for the company. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group lifted their target price on Abbott Laboratories from $120.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, October 17th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Abbott Laboratories presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $129.67.

Abbott Laboratories Stock Up 4.6 %

The business has a 50 day moving average price of $114.82 and a 200 day moving average price of $108.78. The firm has a market capitalization of $206.40 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.47, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.69 and a beta of 0.72. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a current ratio of 1.68 and a quick ratio of 1.18.

Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 16th. The healthcare product maker reported $1.21 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.20 by $0.01. Abbott Laboratories had a return on equity of 20.30% and a net margin of 13.99%. The company had revenue of $10.64 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $10.55 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.14 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 4.9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts predict that Abbott Laboratories will post 4.67 earnings per share for the current year.

Abbott Laboratories Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, October 15th will be paid a $0.55 dividend. This represents a $2.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.85%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, October 15th. Abbott Laboratories’s dividend payout ratio is 66.87%.

Insider Activity at Abbott Laboratories

In other news, CEO Robert B. Ford sold 141,679 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $116.41, for a total transaction of $16,492,852.39. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 220,059 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $25,617,068.19. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 1.10% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Abbott Laboratories

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of ABT. FORVIS Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Abbott Laboratories by 0.8% in the first quarter. FORVIS Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 13,451 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock valued at $1,529,000 after acquiring an additional 111 shares during the last quarter. Diversify Advisory Services LLC bought a new position in Abbott Laboratories during the 1st quarter worth approximately $2,688,000. Mission Wealth Management LP increased its stake in Abbott Laboratories by 14.4% in the first quarter. Mission Wealth Management LP now owns 15,849 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock valued at $1,801,000 after purchasing an additional 1,994 shares in the last quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. lifted its holdings in Abbott Laboratories by 2.0% during the first quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 303,668 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock worth $31,767,000 after acquiring an additional 5,817 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Janney Montgomery Scott LLC grew its position in shares of Abbott Laboratories by 3.9% in the 1st quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 610,006 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock valued at $69,333,000 after purchasing an additional 22,907 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 75.18% of the company’s stock.

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.