Carret Asset Management LLC Reduces Stake in Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT)

Carret Asset Management LLC decreased its holdings in shares of Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) by 0.6% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 50,949 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock after selling 285 shares during the quarter. Carret Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Abbott Laboratories were worth $5,791,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Abbott Laboratories by 0.5% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 156,467,081 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock worth $17,222,332,000 after purchasing an additional 701,740 shares during the last quarter. Capital Research Global Investors increased its position in Abbott Laboratories by 9.5% during the fourth quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 86,588,614 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock worth $9,530,825,000 after buying an additional 7,527,778 shares during the period. Capital International Investors boosted its holdings in shares of Abbott Laboratories by 2.3% in the fourth quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 64,294,784 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock valued at $7,077,148,000 after acquiring an additional 1,457,847 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its position in shares of Abbott Laboratories by 3.3% during the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 32,236,101 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock worth $3,548,228,000 after acquiring an additional 1,027,390 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Abbott Laboratories in the 4th quarter valued at $2,115,836,000. 75.18% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Jr. Robert E. Funck sold 10,097 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $104.57, for a total value of $1,055,843.29. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 211,341 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $22,099,928.37. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In other Abbott Laboratories news, EVP Jr. Robert E. Funck sold 10,097 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, May 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $104.57, for a total value of $1,055,843.29. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 211,341 shares in the company, valued at approximately $22,099,928.37. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Lisa D. Earnhardt sold 22,852 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $106.25, for a total value of $2,428,025.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 61,462 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,530,337.50. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.47% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have commented on the stock. Raymond James restated a “buy” rating and issued a $124.00 price objective on shares of Abbott Laboratories in a research note on Wednesday, April 24th. Barclays dropped their price target on Abbott Laboratories from $141.00 to $140.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 22nd. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $125.00 target price on shares of Abbott Laboratories in a research note on Tuesday, June 4th. Evercore ISI cut their price target on Abbott Laboratories from $125.00 to $120.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group began coverage on shares of Abbott Laboratories in a research report on Thursday, May 30th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $121.00 price objective on the stock. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $120.18.

Abbott Laboratories Price Performance

ABT stock traded down $0.87 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $102.33. 2,014,606 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 5,653,487. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a current ratio of 1.60. The stock has a market cap of $178.02 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.99, a PEG ratio of 2.50 and a beta of 0.72. Abbott Laboratories has a fifty-two week low of $89.67 and a fifty-two week high of $121.64. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $104.63 and its 200-day moving average price is $110.05.

Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 17th. The healthcare product maker reported $0.98 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.96 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $9.96 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.88 billion. Abbott Laboratories had a net margin of 13.96% and a return on equity of 20.18%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.03 EPS. Research analysts predict that Abbott Laboratories will post 4.62 earnings per share for the current year.

Abbott Laboratories Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, July 15th will be issued a $0.55 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, July 15th. This represents a $2.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.15%. Abbott Laboratories’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 68.54%.

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.