Searle & CO. Has $1.73 Million Stock Holdings in Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT)

Searle & CO. reduced its stake in Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) by 12.6% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 15,200 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock after selling 2,182 shares during the quarter. Searle & CO.’s holdings in Abbott Laboratories were worth $1,733,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Unique Wealth Strategies LLC bought a new stake in Abbott Laboratories in the 2nd quarter valued at $28,000. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Abbott Laboratories in the first quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Future Financial Wealth Managment LLC bought a new position in Abbott Laboratories during the 3rd quarter worth $31,000. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. acquired a new position in Abbott Laboratories in the 2nd quarter valued at $32,000. Finally, Ridgewood Investments LLC bought a new stake in shares of Abbott Laboratories during the 2nd quarter valued at $37,000. 75.18% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Abbott Laboratories Trading Up 0.1 %

Shares of NYSE:ABT traded up $0.08 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $116.20. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 852,044 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,718,713. The firm has a market capitalization of $202.15 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.17, a PEG ratio of 2.74 and a beta of 0.72. Abbott Laboratories has a fifty-two week low of $91.64 and a fifty-two week high of $121.64. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $114.31 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $108.56. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a quick ratio of 1.18 and a current ratio of 1.68.

Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 16th. The healthcare product maker reported $1.21 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.20 by $0.01. Abbott Laboratories had a return on equity of 20.18% and a net margin of 13.65%. The firm had revenue of $10.64 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $10.55 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.14 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.9% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts forecast that Abbott Laboratories will post 4.66 earnings per share for the current year.

Abbott Laboratories Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, October 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.55 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, October 15th. This represents a $2.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.89%. Abbott Laboratories’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 68.54%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts recently commented on ABT shares. Piper Sandler Companies started coverage on Abbott Laboratories in a research note on Thursday, September 19th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $131.00 price target for the company. Barclays increased their price target on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $140.00 to $143.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, July 29th. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their target price on Abbott Laboratories from $120.00 to $125.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price objective on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $125.00 to $130.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 8th. Finally, Piper Sandler boosted their target price on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $131.00 to $133.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $129.67.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Robert B. Ford sold 141,679 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $116.41, for a total transaction of $16,492,852.39. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 220,059 shares in the company, valued at approximately $25,617,068.19. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Corporate insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

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.