Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) Stake Raised by First Horizon Advisors Inc.

First Horizon Advisors Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) by 2.1% in the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 117,119 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,365 shares during the period. First Horizon Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Abbott Laboratories were worth $13,353,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in ABT. Unique Wealth Strategies LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Abbott Laboratories during the 2nd quarter valued at $28,000. Future Financial Wealth Managment LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Abbott Laboratories during the third quarter valued at $31,000. Peterson Financial Group Inc. purchased a new position in Abbott Laboratories in the 3rd quarter worth about $32,000. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Abbott Laboratories by 78.4% during the 3rd quarter. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 289 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 127 shares during the period. Finally, Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. purchased a new stake in Abbott Laboratories during the second quarter valued at about $32,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.18% of the company’s stock.

Abbott Laboratories Stock Performance

ABT stock opened at $117.10 on Wednesday. Abbott Laboratories has a 12 month low of $98.95 and a 12 month high of $121.64. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $115.55 and a two-hundred day moving average of $109.70. The company has a market capitalization of $203.10 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.59, a P/E/G ratio of 2.73 and a beta of 0.72. 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 (NYSE:ABT) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 16th. The healthcare product maker reported $1.21 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.20 by $0.01. Abbott Laboratories had a return on equity of 20.18% and a net margin of 13.99%. The company had revenue of $10.64 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $10.55 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $1.14 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.9% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Abbott Laboratories will post 4.67 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Abbott Laboratories Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, October 15th were paid a $0.55 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, October 15th. This represents a $2.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.88%. Abbott Laboratories’s dividend payout ratio is presently 66.87%.

Insider Activity at Abbott Laboratories

In related news, CEO Robert B. Ford sold 141,679 shares of Abbott Laboratories stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $116.41, for a total value of $16,492,852.39. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 220,059 shares in the company, valued at $25,617,068.19. This trade represents a 39.17 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.47% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on ABT shares. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price target on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $125.00 to $130.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 8th. Oppenheimer began coverage on shares of Abbott Laboratories in a research note on Tuesday, October 8th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $130.00 target price on the stock. Citigroup lifted their price target on Abbott Laboratories from $119.00 to $127.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, August 22nd. UBS Group upped their price target on Abbott Laboratories from $143.00 to $146.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein raised their price objective on Abbott Laboratories from $133.00 to $138.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Abbott Laboratories has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $130.07.

Abbott Laboratories 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.