Stratos Investment Management LLC Acquires 2,335 Shares of Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT)

Stratos Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) by 90.5% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 4,915 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock after buying an additional 2,335 shares during the quarter. Stratos Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Abbott Laboratories were worth $556,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in ABT. Groupama Asset Managment boosted its position in shares of Abbott Laboratories by 22.2% in the 3rd quarter. Groupama Asset Managment now owns 228,448 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 41,557 shares during the last quarter. Future Financial Wealth Managment LLC acquired a new stake in Abbott Laboratories during the 3rd quarter worth $31,000. Peterson Financial Group Inc. acquired a new stake in Abbott Laboratories during the 3rd quarter worth $32,000. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC raised its stake in Abbott Laboratories by 78.4% during the 3rd quarter. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 289 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 127 shares during the period. Finally, Highline Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Abbott Laboratories during the 3rd quarter worth $37,000. 75.18% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Abbott Laboratories Trading Up 2.3 %

Shares of ABT stock opened at $132.07 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 1.60, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32. The stock has a market cap of $229.06 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.26, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.39 and a beta of 0.74. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $116.80 and a 200 day simple moving average of $114.71. Abbott Laboratories has a 1 year low of $99.71 and a 1 year high of $132.50.

Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 22nd. The healthcare product maker reported $1.34 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $1.34. Abbott Laboratories had a return on equity of 20.74% and a net margin of 31.95%. The business had revenue of $10.97 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $11.03 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.19 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts predict that Abbott Laboratories will post 5.14 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Abbott Laboratories Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 14th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, January 15th will be paid a $0.59 dividend. This represents a $2.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.79%. This is a boost from Abbott Laboratories’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, January 15th. Abbott Laboratories’s dividend payout ratio is presently 30.85%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently commented on the company. Evercore ISI raised their price objective on Abbott Laboratories to $136.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 2nd. Sanford C. Bernstein lifted their price target on Abbott Laboratories from $133.00 to $138.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. Mizuho lifted their price target on Abbott Laboratories from $115.00 to $130.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. Royal Bank of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $135.00 price target on shares of Abbott Laboratories in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus lifted their target price on Abbott Laboratories from $130.00 to $135.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $133.06.

Insider Activity

In other Abbott Laboratories news, EVP Daniel Gesua Sive Salvadori sold 23,771 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $128.50, for a total transaction of $3,054,573.50. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 125,697 shares in the company, valued at approximately $16,152,064.50. This trade represents a 15.90 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 0.47% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.