Vectors Research Management LLC Cuts Position in Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT)

Vectors Research Management LLC lessened its stake in Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) by 11.3% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 12,776 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock after selling 1,623 shares during the period. Vectors Research Management LLC’s holdings in Abbott Laboratories were worth $1,445,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Abbott Laboratories during the 4th quarter worth approximately $2,373,461,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Abbott Laboratories during the fourth quarter worth $635,056,000. Capital International Investors grew its stake in Abbott Laboratories by 3.4% during the 4th quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 67,972,953 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock worth $7,688,160,000 after buying an additional 2,229,026 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. increased its position in Abbott Laboratories by 27.6% during the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 9,018,429 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock valued at $1,020,074,000 after buying an additional 1,948,329 shares in the last quarter. Finally, APG Asset Management N.V. boosted its holdings in Abbott Laboratories by 1,480.2% in the fourth quarter. APG Asset Management N.V. now owns 1,551,626 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock worth $169,488,000 after acquiring an additional 1,453,436 shares in the last quarter. 75.18% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other Abbott Laboratories news, SVP Eric Shroff sold 562 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $138.17, for a total transaction of $77,651.54. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 31,970 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,417,294.90. The trade was a 1.73 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Lisa D. Earnhardt sold 91,167 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $133.82, for a total value of $12,199,967.94. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 71,928 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,625,404.96. The trade was a 55.90 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 116,449 shares of company stock worth $15,463,316 over the last three months. 0.46% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Abbott Laboratories Price Performance

Shares of NYSE ABT opened at $131.00 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a current ratio of 1.60 and a quick ratio of 1.14. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $130.62 and its 200-day simple moving average is $121.96. Abbott Laboratories has a 12 month low of $99.71 and a 12 month high of $141.23. The stock has a market capitalization of $227.20 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.12, a PEG ratio of 2.52 and a beta of 0.80.

Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 16th. The healthcare product maker reported $1.09 earnings per share 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 company had revenue of $10.36 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $10.38 billion. Analysts expect that Abbott Laboratories will post 5.14 EPS for the current year.

Abbott Laboratories Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, April 15th will be issued a $0.59 dividend. This represents a $2.36 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.80%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, April 15th. Abbott Laboratories’s payout ratio is currently 30.61%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

ABT has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $117.00 to $127.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday. Piper Sandler restated an “overweight” rating and set a $145.00 price target (up previously from $133.00) on shares of Abbott Laboratories in a research note on Thursday. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price objective on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $138.00 to $154.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 4th. Evercore ISI upped their target price on Abbott Laboratories to $136.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 2nd. Finally, Citigroup lifted their price target on Abbott Laboratories from $135.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 4th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Abbott Laboratories currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average 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.