Liberty Capital Management Inc. Buys 2,399 Shares of Abbott Laboratories $ABT

Liberty Capital Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) by 5.5% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 46,340 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,399 shares during the period. Abbott Laboratories makes up about 1.3% of Liberty Capital Management Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 25th biggest position. Liberty Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Abbott Laboratories were worth $6,303,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in ABT. Nuveen LLC acquired a new stake in Abbott Laboratories during the first quarter worth approximately $1,658,180,000. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. grew its stake in Abbott Laboratories by 29.2% during the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 15,985,797 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock worth $2,120,516,000 after purchasing an additional 3,616,471 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its stake in Abbott Laboratories by 12.8% during the first quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 29,763,415 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock worth $3,948,117,000 after purchasing an additional 3,371,113 shares during the period. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA grew its stake in Abbott Laboratories by 12.8% during the first quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 14,451,305 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock worth $1,916,966,000 after purchasing an additional 1,639,954 shares during the period. Finally, Jensen Investment Management Inc. grew its stake in Abbott Laboratories by 1,221.2% during the first quarter. Jensen Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,365,785 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock worth $181,171,000 after purchasing an additional 1,262,407 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.18% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ABT has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Royal Bank Of Canada raised their target price on Abbott Laboratories from $145.00 to $147.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 15th. Raymond James Financial reduced their price objective on Abbott Laboratories from $142.00 to $141.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, July 18th. BTIG Research reduced their price objective on Abbott Laboratories from $148.00 to $145.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, July 18th. Mizuho raised their price objective on Abbott Laboratories from $130.00 to $140.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 16th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on Abbott Laboratories from $147.00 to $142.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, July 18th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have issued a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $145.22.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CFO Philip P. Boudreau sold 5,550 shares of Abbott Laboratories stock in a transaction on Friday, August 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $134.55, for a total transaction of $746,752.50. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 51,003 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,862,453.65. This trade represents a 9.81% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Company insiders own 0.46% of the company’s stock.

Abbott Laboratories Stock Up 0.6%

Shares of NYSE:ABT opened at $133.97 on Wednesday. The stock has a market cap of $233.17 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.79, a PEG ratio of 2.52 and a beta of 0.69. The company has a quick ratio of 1.30, a current ratio of 1.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25. Abbott Laboratories has a 12-month low of $110.86 and a 12-month high of $141.23. The business’s 50 day moving average is $131.48 and its 200 day moving average is $131.22.

Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, July 17th. The healthcare product maker reported $1.26 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $1.26. The company had revenue of $11.14 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $11.01 billion. Abbott Laboratories had a return on equity of 18.32% and a net margin of 32.43%.Abbott Laboratories’s quarterly revenue was up 7.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.14 earnings per share. Abbott Laboratories has set its FY 2025 guidance at 5.100-5.200 EPS. Q3 2025 guidance at 1.280-1.320 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Abbott Laboratories will post 5.14 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Abbott Laboratories Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 17th. Investors of record on Wednesday, October 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.59 per share. This represents a $2.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.8%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, October 15th. Abbott Laboratories’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 29.57%.

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.