Signet Financial Management LLC Sells 178 Shares of Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT)

Signet Financial Management LLC decreased its position in shares of Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) by 5.9% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,856 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock after selling 178 shares during the period. Signet Financial Management LLC’s holdings in Abbott Laboratories were worth $323,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of ABT. Groupama Asset Managment increased its holdings in Abbott Laboratories by 22.2% during the 3rd quarter. Groupama Asset Managment now owns 228,448 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 41,557 shares in the last quarter. Future Financial Wealth Managment LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Abbott Laboratories in the third quarter valued at $31,000. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. bought a new position in shares of Abbott Laboratories in the second quarter valued at about $32,000. Peterson Financial Group Inc. bought a new stake in Abbott Laboratories during the 3rd quarter worth about $32,000. Finally, Valued Wealth Advisors LLC increased its position in Abbott Laboratories by 78.4% in the 3rd quarter. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 289 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 127 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 75.18% of the company’s stock.

Abbott Laboratories Price Performance

Shares of ABT stock opened at $113.12 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.14, a current ratio of 1.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32. Abbott Laboratories has a 12-month low of $99.71 and a 12-month high of $121.64. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $115.23 and a 200-day moving average of $112.60. The firm has a market capitalization of $196.20 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.38, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.69 and a beta of 0.73.

Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, October 16th. The healthcare product maker reported $1.21 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.20 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $10.64 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $10.55 billion. Abbott Laboratories had a return on equity of 20.18% and a net margin of 13.99%. The company’s revenue was up 4.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.14 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Abbott Laboratories will post 4.67 earnings per share for the current year.

Abbott Laboratories Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 14th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, January 15th will be paid a $0.59 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, January 15th. This represents a $2.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.09%. This is a positive change from Abbott Laboratories’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. Abbott Laboratories’s payout ratio is presently 71.73%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Barclays upped their target price on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $143.00 to $149.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price objective on Abbott Laboratories from $120.00 to $125.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. Sanford C. Bernstein boosted their target price on Abbott Laboratories from $133.00 to $138.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price objective on Abbott Laboratories from $125.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 8th. Finally, Evercore ISI upped their target price on shares of Abbott Laboratories to $136.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 2nd. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Abbott Laboratories presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $131.57.

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.