5,204 Shares in Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) Acquired by US Asset Management LLC

US Asset Management LLC bought a new position in Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm bought 5,204 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock, valued at approximately $573,000.

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Breed s Hill Capital LLC bought a new position in Abbott Laboratories in the fourth quarter worth about $895,000. Catalyst Financial Partners LLC grew its stake in Abbott Laboratories by 6.7% in the fourth quarter. Catalyst Financial Partners LLC now owns 6,267 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock worth $690,000 after purchasing an additional 394 shares during the period. E Fund Management Co. Ltd. lifted its position in Abbott Laboratories by 14.9% during the fourth quarter. E Fund Management Co. Ltd. now owns 4,119 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock valued at $453,000 after buying an additional 533 shares during the period. Pioneer Trust Bank N A OR lifted its position in Abbott Laboratories by 4.6% during the 4th quarter. Pioneer Trust Bank N A OR now owns 57,337 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock valued at $6,311,000 after acquiring an additional 2,524 shares during the period. Finally, Pinnacle Wealth Management Advisory Group LLC boosted its stake in Abbott Laboratories by 18.0% during the fourth quarter. Pinnacle Wealth Management Advisory Group LLC now owns 7,739 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock worth $852,000 after acquiring an additional 1,182 shares in the last quarter. 75.18% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Abbott Laboratories Stock Performance

Abbott Laboratories stock traded up $0.21 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $104.88. 3,614,845 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 5,541,498. The stock has a market capitalization of $182.45 billion, a PE ratio of 32.62, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.55 and a beta of 0.76. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a current ratio of 1.60 and a quick ratio of 1.11. The business’s 50-day moving average is $111.42 and its 200-day moving average is $108.79. Abbott Laboratories has a 12-month low of $89.67 and a 12-month high of $121.64.

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

Abbott Laboratories Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 15th. Investors of record on Monday, April 15th will be issued a $0.55 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 12th. This represents a $2.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.10%. Abbott Laboratories’s dividend payout ratio is currently 68.54%.

Insider Activity at Abbott Laboratories

In other Abbott Laboratories news, EVP Andrea F. Wainer sold 12,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $120.00, for a total transaction of $1,500,000.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 78,704 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,444,480. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In related news, EVP Daniel Gesua Sive Salvadori sold 963 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $118.50, for a total transaction of $114,115.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 125,697 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $14,895,094.50. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Andrea F. Wainer sold 12,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $120.00, for a total transaction of $1,500,000.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 78,704 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,444,480. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 36,787 shares of company stock worth $4,098,073. Corporate insiders own 0.47% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

ABT has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Raymond James reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $124.00 price target on shares of Abbott Laboratories in a research report on Wednesday, April 24th. Citigroup raised their price target on Abbott Laboratories from $126.00 to $128.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 3rd. Evercore ISI increased their price objective on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $120.00 to $125.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 4th. Barclays dropped their target price on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $141.00 to $140.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 22nd. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada decreased their price objective on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $128.00 to $125.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 18th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $121.50.

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.