Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) Shares Sold by American Trust

American Trust reduced its holdings in Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) by 1.6% in the 1st quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 35,557 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock after selling 569 shares during the period. American Trust’s holdings in Abbott Laboratories were worth $4,041,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Signature Resources Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in Abbott Laboratories in the 4th quarter worth about $29,000. Transcendent Capital Group LLC purchased a new stake in Abbott Laboratories in the 4th quarter worth about $29,000. Richardson Financial Services Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Abbott Laboratories during the 4th quarter worth about $29,000. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Abbott Laboratories during the 1st quarter worth about $30,000. Finally, True Wealth Design LLC raised its stake in shares of Abbott Laboratories by 1,677.8% during the 4th quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 320 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 302 shares in the last quarter. 75.18% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Abbott Laboratories Stock Performance

ABT traded up $1.16 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $111.31. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 9,885,690 shares, compared to its average volume of 8,385,752. The stock has a market cap of $193.67 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.68, a PEG ratio of 2.74 and a beta of 0.72. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $104.22 and a 200 day simple moving average of $109.03. The company has a current ratio of 1.68, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33. Abbott Laboratories has a twelve month low of $89.67 and a twelve month high of $121.64.

Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) last released its earnings results on Thursday, July 18th. The healthcare product maker reported $1.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.10 by $0.04. Abbott Laboratories had a return on equity of 20.18% and a net margin of 13.65%. The firm had revenue of $10.38 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $10.37 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.08 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 4.0% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts expect that Abbott Laboratories will post 4.66 earnings per share for the current year.

Abbott Laboratories Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, July 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.55 per share. This represents a $2.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.98%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, July 15th. Abbott Laboratories’s payout ratio is presently 68.54%.

Insider Transactions at Abbott Laboratories

In other news, EVP Jr. Robert E. Funck sold 10,097 shares of Abbott Laboratories stock in a transaction that occurred 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 sale, 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 legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, EVP Lisa D. Earnhardt sold 22,852 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 61,462 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,530,337.50. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Jr. Robert E. Funck sold 10,097 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, the executive vice president now owns 211,341 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $22,099,928.37. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.10% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ABT has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $125.00 price target on shares of Abbott Laboratories in a research note on Tuesday, June 4th. Edward Jones downgraded Abbott Laboratories from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Citigroup cut their price objective on Abbott Laboratories from $128.00 to $119.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, May 22nd. Evercore ISI cut 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. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group started coverage on Abbott Laboratories in a research note on Thursday, May 30th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $121.00 price objective on the stock. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $121.00.

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.