OFI Invest Asset Management Sells 210,140 Shares of Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT)

OFI Invest Asset Management cut its stake in Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) by 96.7% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 7,092 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock after selling 210,140 shares during the quarter. OFI Invest Asset Management’s holdings in Abbott Laboratories were worth $688,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of ABT. Signature Resources Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in Abbott Laboratories in the fourth quarter worth $29,000. Transcendent Capital Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Abbott Laboratories during the fourth quarter valued at $29,000. Richardson Financial Services Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Abbott Laboratories during the fourth quarter valued at $29,000. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Abbott Laboratories during the first quarter valued at $30,000. Finally, True Wealth Design LLC increased its stake in shares of Abbott Laboratories by 1,677.8% during the fourth quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 320 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock valued at $35,000 after buying an additional 302 shares during the period. 75.18% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Abbott Laboratories Stock Performance

NYSE ABT traded up $0.06 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $111.00. The stock had a trading volume of 4,643,293 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,033,353. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $105.47 and a 200 day moving average of $108.76. The stock has a market cap of $193.10 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.58, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.74 and a beta of 0.72. Abbott Laboratories has a 52-week low of $89.67 and a 52-week high of $121.64. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a current ratio of 1.68.

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

Abbott Laboratories Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, July 15th were paid 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 was Monday, July 15th. Abbott Laboratories’s payout ratio is 68.54%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have recently commented on ABT. Royal Bank of Canada restated 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 shares of Abbott Laboratories from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 30th. Citigroup reduced their target price on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $128.00 to $119.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, May 22nd. Evercore ISI reduced their target price on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $125.00 to $120.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, July 2nd. Finally, 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 target on the stock. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $121.00.

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.