Hartford Financial Management Inc. Has $6.22 Million Holdings in Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT)

Hartford Financial Management Inc. decreased its position in Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) by 1.3% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 46,874 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock after selling 610 shares during the quarter. Abbott Laboratories comprises approximately 1.3% of Hartford Financial Management Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 16th biggest position. Hartford Financial Management Inc.’s holdings in Abbott Laboratories were worth $6,218,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Cim LLC lifted its stake in Abbott Laboratories by 0.4% during the fourth quarter. Cim LLC now owns 16,967 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock worth $1,919,000 after purchasing an additional 73 shares during the last quarter. Cape Investment Advisory Inc. increased its stake in shares of Abbott Laboratories by 6.6% in 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. Capital Square LLC raised its holdings in shares of Abbott Laboratories by 2.7% during the 4th quarter. Capital Square LLC now owns 2,941 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock worth $368,000 after buying an additional 77 shares in the last quarter. Consilium Wealth Advisory LLC lifted its position in shares of Abbott Laboratories by 2.1% during the 1st quarter. Consilium Wealth Advisory LLC now owns 3,822 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock worth $507,000 after buying an additional 78 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Cyrus J. Lawrence LLC boosted its stake in Abbott Laboratories by 9.0% in the fourth quarter. Cyrus J. Lawrence LLC now owns 954 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock valued at $107,000 after buying an additional 79 shares in the last quarter. 75.18% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

ABT has been the subject of a number of research reports. Jefferies Financial Group increased their target price on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $135.00 to $137.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, April 17th. Raymond James Financial increased their price objective on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $132.00 to $142.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 17th. Barclays boosted their target price on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $158.00 to $159.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 17th. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $117.00 to $127.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, April 17th. Finally, Leerink Partners initiated coverage on Abbott Laboratories in a report on Monday. They set a “market perform” rating and a $143.00 price objective on the stock. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Abbott Laboratories has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $142.61.

Abbott Laboratories Trading Up 0.1%

NYSE ABT opened at $132.35 on Thursday. Abbott Laboratories has a 12 month low of $99.71 and a 12 month high of $141.23. The company has a current ratio of 1.78, a quick ratio of 1.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26. The firm has a market capitalization of $230.27 billion, a PE ratio of 17.17, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.51 and a beta of 0.73. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $131.91 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $126.66.

Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, April 16th. The healthcare product maker reported $1.09 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.07 by $0.02. Abbott Laboratories had a return on equity of 19.01% and a net margin of 31.89%. The business had revenue of $10.36 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $10.38 billion. On average, analysts expect that Abbott Laboratories will post 5.14 EPS for the current year.

Abbott Laboratories Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, July 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.59 per share. This represents a $2.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.78%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, July 15th. Abbott Laboratories’s dividend payout ratio is presently 30.61%.

Insider Activity at Abbott Laboratories

In other news, Director Sally E. Blount sold 2,600 shares of Abbott Laboratories stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $129.66, for a total value of $337,116.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 34,058 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,415,960.28. This trade represents a 7.09% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 0.46% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.