Franklin Street Advisors Inc. NC Acquires 1,986 Shares of Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT)

Franklin Street Advisors Inc. NC raised its stake in shares of Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) by 31.1% during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 8,372 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,986 shares during the quarter. Franklin Street Advisors Inc. NC’s holdings in Abbott Laboratories were worth $952,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. Alliance Wealth Advisors LLC UT lifted its stake in shares of Abbott Laboratories by 0.4% in the fourth quarter. Alliance Wealth Advisors LLC UT now owns 25,085 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock worth $2,761,000 after acquiring an additional 92 shares during the period. Rappaport Reiches Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Abbott Laboratories by 0.8% during the fourth quarter. Rappaport Reiches Capital Management LLC now owns 12,287 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock worth $1,352,000 after buying an additional 94 shares during the period. Avion Wealth lifted its holdings in Abbott Laboratories by 19.4% in the fourth quarter. Avion Wealth now owns 591 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock valued at $65,000 after buying an additional 96 shares during the period. Wynn Capital LLC grew its holdings in Abbott Laboratories by 2.9% during the 1st quarter. Wynn Capital LLC now owns 3,427 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock worth $390,000 after acquiring an additional 98 shares during the period. Finally, Berger Financial Group Inc lifted its stake in shares of Abbott Laboratories by 3.0% in the 4th quarter. Berger Financial Group Inc now owns 3,423 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock valued at $377,000 after purchasing an additional 99 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 75.18% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Abbott Laboratories

In other Abbott Laboratories news, EVP Lisa D. Earnhardt sold 22,852 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $106.25, for a total value of $2,428,025.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 61,462 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,530,337.50. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In other news, EVP Lisa D. Earnhardt sold 22,852 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $106.25, for a total value of $2,428,025.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 61,462 shares in the company, valued at $6,530,337.50. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Jr. Robert E. Funck sold 10,097 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, May 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $104.57, for a total value of $1,055,843.29. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 211,341 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $22,099,928.37. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.10% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Abbott Laboratories Price Performance

ABT traded down $0.72 during trading on Thursday, reaching $104.16. 1,517,153 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 5,665,326. The company’s 50-day moving average is $104.87 and its two-hundred day moving average is $110.13. Abbott Laboratories has a 12-month low of $89.67 and a 12-month high of $121.64. The company has a market cap of $181.20 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.71, a P/E/G ratio of 2.54 and a beta of 0.74. The company has a quick ratio of 1.11, a current ratio of 1.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32.

Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 17th. The healthcare product maker reported $0.98 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.96 by $0.02. Abbott Laboratories had a net margin of 13.96% and a return on equity of 20.18%. The firm had revenue of $9.96 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.88 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.03 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.2% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts forecast that Abbott Laboratories will post 4.62 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Abbott Laboratories Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, July 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.55 per share. This represents a $2.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.11%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, July 15th. Abbott Laboratories’s dividend payout ratio is currently 68.54%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have issued reports on ABT. Citigroup cut their price target on Abbott Laboratories from $128.00 to $119.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, May 22nd. The Goldman Sachs Group began coverage on shares of Abbott Laboratories in a report on Thursday, May 30th. They set a “buy” rating and a $121.00 price objective on the stock. Barclays decreased their target price on Abbott Laboratories from $141.00 to $140.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 22nd. Royal Bank of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and set a $125.00 price objective on shares of Abbott Laboratories in a report on Tuesday, June 4th. Finally, Raymond James reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $124.00 price target on shares of Abbott Laboratories in a research report on Wednesday, April 24th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $120.64.

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.