Generali Asset Management SPA SGR Takes Position in Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT)

Generali Asset Management SPA SGR bought a new stake in shares of Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm bought 112,004 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock, valued at approximately $12,669,000.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Noble Wealth Management PBC purchased a new position in Abbott Laboratories during the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. NewSquare Capital LLC increased its position in Abbott Laboratories by 78.4% during the 4th quarter. NewSquare Capital LLC now owns 239 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 105 shares during the period. Rialto Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Abbott Laboratories during the 4th quarter valued at about $29,000. Wingate Wealth Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Abbott Laboratories in the 4th quarter valued at about $34,000. Finally, Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Abbott Laboratories in the 4th quarter valued at about $37,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.18% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Abbott Laboratories news, EVP Daniel Gesua Sive Salvadori sold 23,771 shares of Abbott Laboratories stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $128.50, for a total transaction of $3,054,573.50. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 125,697 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $16,152,064.50. The trade was a 15.90 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Andrea F. Wainer sold 949 shares of Abbott Laboratories stock in a transaction on Monday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $138.17, for a total transaction of $131,123.33. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 74,381 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,277,222.77. This trade represents a 1.26 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 116,449 shares of company stock valued at $15,463,316. 1.10% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Abbott Laboratories Price Performance

NYSE:ABT opened at $127.54 on Tuesday. 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 has a market cap of $221.19 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.67, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.52 and a beta of 0.70. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $127.45 and a 200-day moving average price of $119.58. Abbott Laboratories has a 1-year low of $99.71 and a 1-year high of $141.23.

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

Abbott Laboratories Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, April 15th will be issued a $0.59 dividend. This represents a $2.36 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.85%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, April 15th. Abbott Laboratories’s payout ratio is presently 30.85%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

ABT has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Barclays restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $158.00 price target (up from $149.00) on shares of Abbott Laboratories in a report on Monday, January 27th. Argus upgraded shares of Abbott Laboratories to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Royal Bank of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $135.00 price target on shares of Abbott Laboratories in a report on Tuesday, January 21st. StockNews.com cut shares of Abbott Laboratories from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Finally, Bank of America lifted their target price on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $133.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, March 10th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Abbott Laboratories currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $137.94.

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.