SP Asset Management LLC Cuts Stake in Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT)

SP Asset Management LLC trimmed its position in shares of Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) by 1.1% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 121,825 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock after selling 1,416 shares during the quarter. Abbott Laboratories comprises about 1.2% of SP Asset Management LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 22nd biggest holding. SP Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Abbott Laboratories were worth $13,780,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Cape Investment Advisory Inc. grew its position in Abbott Laboratories by 6.6% during the 4th quarter. Cape Investment Advisory Inc. now owns 1,236 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock valued at $140,000 after purchasing an additional 76 shares during the last quarter. LMG Wealth Partners LLC grew its position in Abbott Laboratories by 3.8% during the 4th quarter. LMG Wealth Partners LLC now owns 2,161 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock valued at $244,000 after purchasing an additional 80 shares during the last quarter. Jacobson & Schmitt Advisors LLC grew its position in Abbott Laboratories by 2.9% during the 4th quarter. Jacobson & Schmitt Advisors LLC now owns 2,827 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock valued at $320,000 after purchasing an additional 80 shares during the last quarter. Glass Wealth Management Co LLC grew its position in Abbott Laboratories by 3.2% during the 4th quarter. Glass Wealth Management Co LLC now owns 2,640 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock valued at $299,000 after purchasing an additional 81 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sfmg LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Abbott Laboratories by 1.9% during the 3rd quarter. Sfmg LLC now owns 4,622 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock valued at $527,000 after acquiring an additional 88 shares during the last quarter. 75.18% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Abbott Laboratories Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:ABT opened at $137.68 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a current ratio of 1.60 and a quick ratio of 1.14. Abbott Laboratories has a 1-year low of $99.71 and a 1-year high of $141.23. The company has a market capitalization of $238.79 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.00, a P/E/G ratio of 2.52 and a beta of 0.75. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $124.51 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $118.42.

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

Abbott Laboratories Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, April 15th will be issued a $0.59 dividend. This represents a $2.36 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.71%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, April 15th. Abbott Laboratories’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 30.85%.

Insider Activity at Abbott Laboratories

In related news, SVP Eric Shroff sold 562 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $138.17, for a total transaction of $77,651.54. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 31,970 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,417,294.90. This represents a 1.73 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Andrea F. Wainer sold 949 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $138.17, for a total transaction of $131,123.33. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 74,381 shares in the company, valued at $10,277,222.77. This trade represents a 1.26 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 25,282 shares of company stock valued at $3,263,348 over the last 90 days. 1.10% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have recently commented on ABT. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price target on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $130.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $146.00 to $148.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Barclays reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $158.00 price target (up from $149.00) on shares of Abbott Laboratories in a research note on Monday, January 27th. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price target on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $138.00 to $154.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, Argus upgraded shares of Abbott Laboratories to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fourteen have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $137.19.

Abbott Laboratories 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.