Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. Trims Holdings in Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT)

Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. lowered its position in shares of Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) by 0.9% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 312,266 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock after selling 2,937 shares during the period. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Abbott Laboratories were worth $35,320,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of ABT. Redwood Park Advisors LLC bought a new position in Abbott Laboratories in the 4th quarter worth $25,000. Noble Wealth Management PBC bought a new position in shares of Abbott Laboratories in the fourth quarter worth about $26,000. NewSquare Capital LLC raised its stake in Abbott Laboratories by 78.4% during the 4th quarter. NewSquare Capital LLC now owns 239 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 105 shares during the period. WealthTrak Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in Abbott Laboratories in the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. Finally, Rialto Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Abbott Laboratories in the 4th quarter worth approximately $29,000. 75.18% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Abbott Laboratories Trading Up 0.5 %

Shares of NYSE ABT opened at $133.25 on Wednesday. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $130.09 and its 200-day moving average price is $123.15. Abbott Laboratories has a fifty-two week low of $99.71 and a fifty-two week high of $141.23. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a current ratio of 1.60. The company has a market cap of $231.83 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.42, a PEG ratio of 2.52 and a beta of 0.74.

Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, April 16th. The healthcare product maker reported $1.09 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.07 by $0.02. Abbott Laboratories had a net margin of 31.95% and a return on equity of 20.74%. The firm had revenue of $10.36 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $10.38 billion. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Abbott Laboratories will post 5.14 earnings per share for the current year.

Abbott Laboratories Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, April 15th will be given a dividend of $0.59 per share. This represents a $2.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.77%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, April 15th. Abbott Laboratories’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 30.61%.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Sally E. Blount sold 2,600 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $129.66, for a total value of $337,116.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 34,058 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,415,960.28. The trade was a 7.09 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Andrea F. Wainer sold 949 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $138.17, for a total value of $131,123.33. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 74,381 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,277,222.77. The trade was a 1.26 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 95,278 shares of company stock worth $12,745,859. 0.46% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have recently issued reports on ABT. Bank of America lifted their price objective on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $133.00 to $150.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, March 10th. Argus upgraded shares of Abbott Laboratories to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. Barclays raised their price objective on Abbott Laboratories from $158.00 to $159.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 17th. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their target price on Abbott Laboratories from $140.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, April 17th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus raised their price target on Abbott Laboratories from $135.00 to $145.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, April 17th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $142.59.

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.