John G Ullman & Associates Inc. Has $3.49 Million Position in Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT)

John G Ullman & Associates Inc. reduced its stake in shares of Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) by 0.9% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 30,709 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock after selling 265 shares during the quarter. John G Ullman & Associates Inc.’s holdings in Abbott Laboratories were worth $3,490,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the business. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Abbott Laboratories by 0.5% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 156,467,081 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock valued at $17,222,332,000 after purchasing an additional 701,740 shares during the period. Capital Research Global Investors boosted its position in Abbott Laboratories by 9.5% during the 4th quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 86,588,614 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock worth $9,530,825,000 after acquiring an additional 7,527,778 shares during the last quarter. Capital International Investors boosted its position in Abbott Laboratories by 2.3% during the 4th quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 64,294,784 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock worth $7,077,148,000 after acquiring an additional 1,457,847 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its position in Abbott Laboratories by 3.3% during the 4th 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 Abbott Laboratories during the 4th quarter worth approximately $2,115,836,000. 75.18% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on ABT shares. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $125.00 price target on shares of Abbott Laboratories in a research report on Tuesday, June 4th. Raymond James reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $124.00 price objective on shares of Abbott Laboratories in a research note on Wednesday, April 24th. Barclays dropped their price objective on Abbott Laboratories from $141.00 to $140.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 22nd. The Goldman Sachs Group started coverage on Abbott Laboratories in a research note on Thursday, May 30th. They set a “buy” rating and a $121.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Evercore ISI dropped their price objective on Abbott Laboratories from $125.00 to $120.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, July 2nd. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Abbott Laboratories has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $120.18.

Insiders Place Their Bets

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

Abbott Laboratories Stock Performance

ABT traded up $1.12 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $104.17. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 5,025,283 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,659,196. Abbott Laboratories has a 52 week low of $89.67 and a 52 week high of $121.64. The company’s 50-day moving average is $104.08 and its 200-day moving average is $109.76. 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 firm has a market cap of $181.22 billion, a PE ratio of 32.45, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.46 and a beta of 0.72.

Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) last posted its quarterly earnings results 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. The business had revenue of $9.96 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $9.88 billion. Abbott Laboratories had a return on equity of 20.18% and a net margin of 13.96%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.03 EPS. On average, equities analysts forecast that Abbott Laboratories will post 4.62 EPS for the current year.

Abbott Laboratories Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, July 15th will be given a dividend of $0.55 per share. This represents a $2.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.11%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, July 15th. Abbott Laboratories’s payout ratio is 68.54%.

About Abbott Laboratories

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.