Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) Shares Sold by Blue Chip Partners LLC

Blue Chip Partners LLC cut its stake in shares of Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) by 4.4% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 145,424 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock after selling 6,636 shares during the period. Abbott Laboratories makes up approximately 1.7% of Blue Chip Partners LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 26th biggest holding. Blue Chip Partners LLC’s holdings in Abbott Laboratories were worth $16,007,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Rise Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Abbott Laboratories during the 4th quarter worth approximately $37,000. Stuart Chaussee & Associates Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Abbott Laboratories by 236.0% in the 4th quarter. Stuart Chaussee & Associates Inc. now owns 336 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock valued at $37,000 after acquiring an additional 236 shares during the last quarter. Stonehage Fleming Financial Services Holdings Ltd bought a new stake in shares of Abbott Laboratories in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $40,000. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC increased its holdings in shares of Abbott Laboratories by 79.4% in the 3rd quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 454 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock valued at $44,000 after acquiring an additional 201 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Legacy Financial Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of Abbott Laboratories in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $46,000. 75.18% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Abbott Laboratories

In related news, EVP Daniel Gesua Sive Salvadori sold 963 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, March 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $118.50, for a total value of $114,115.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 125,697 shares in the company, valued at approximately $14,895,094.50. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In related news, EVP Daniel Gesua Sive Salvadori sold 963 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $118.50, for a total value of $114,115.50. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 125,697 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $14,895,094.50. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Andrea F. Wainer sold 42,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $112.50, for a total value of $4,781,250.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 65,027 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,315,537.50. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 56,435 shares of company stock worth $6,451,298 in the last quarter. 1.10% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Abbott Laboratories Price Performance

ABT stock traded up $0.67 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $107.53. 3,575,566 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 5,219,304. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $113.64 and a 200 day simple moving average of $108.22. Abbott Laboratories has a one year low of $89.67 and a one year high of $121.64. The company has a market cap of $186.58 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.50, a P/E/G ratio of 2.59 and a beta of 0.74. The company has a current ratio of 1.64, a quick ratio of 1.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35.

Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) last released 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. Abbott Laboratories had a return on equity of 20.32% and a net margin of 13.96%. The business had revenue of $9.96 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.88 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $1.03 EPS. Abbott Laboratories’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.2% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts forecast that Abbott Laboratories will post 4.62 earnings per share for the current year.

Abbott Laboratories Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 15th. Investors of record on Monday, April 15th will be given 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 dividend yield of 2.05%. Abbott Laboratories’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 68.54%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Raymond James reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $124.00 price target on shares of Abbott Laboratories in a report on Wednesday. Royal Bank of Canada dropped their target price on Abbott Laboratories from $128.00 to $125.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 18th. Citigroup increased their target price on Abbott Laboratories from $126.00 to $128.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 3rd. Evercore ISI increased their target price on Abbott Laboratories from $120.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 4th. Finally, Barclays dropped their target price 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. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $121.50.

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.