13,027 Shares of Abbott Laboratories $ABT Acquired by M Holdings Securities Inc.

M Holdings Securities Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) in the third quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor purchased 13,027 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock, valued at approximately $1,403,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of ABT. Elwood & Goetz Wealth Advisory Group LLC lifted its holdings in Abbott Laboratories by 3.1% in the third quarter. Elwood & Goetz Wealth Advisory Group LLC now owns 3,216 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock worth $318,000 after buying an additional 97 shares during the period. Parkway Wealth Management Group LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Abbott Laboratories by 3.2% during the 3rd quarter. Parkway Wealth Management Group LLC now owns 3,208 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock valued at $317,000 after buying an additional 98 shares in the last quarter. Signature Equity Partners LLC grew its position in shares of Abbott Laboratories by 7.9% in the 3rd quarter. Signature Equity Partners LLC now owns 1,363 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock worth $135,000 after buying an additional 100 shares during the period. St. Johns Investment Management Company LLC increased its stake in shares of Abbott Laboratories by 1.0% in the 2nd quarter. St. Johns Investment Management Company LLC now owns 9,859 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock worth $895,000 after acquiring an additional 101 shares in the last quarter. Finally, AA Financial Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Abbott Laboratories by 1.7% in the 3rd quarter. AA Financial Advisors LLC now owns 6,186 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock worth $611,000 after acquiring an additional 101 shares in the last quarter. 75.18% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Abbott Laboratories Price Performance

ABT opened at $110.41 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $191.04 billion, a PE ratio of 41.20, a P/E/G ratio of 2.02 and a beta of 0.54. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $103.99 and a 200-day moving average price of $101.72. Abbott Laboratories has a 1 year low of $81.97 and a 1 year high of $132.02. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57, a current ratio of 1.38 and a quick ratio of 0.97.

Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 21st. The healthcare product maker reported $1.42 EPS for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $1.42. The company had revenue of $13.01 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $12.99 billion. Abbott Laboratories had a net margin of 9.75% and a return on equity of 17.97%. Abbott Laboratories’s revenue for the quarter was up 14.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.30 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that Abbott Laboratories will post 5.52 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Abbott Laboratories Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 16th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, October 15th will be paid a $0.63 dividend. This represents a $2.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.3%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, October 15th. Abbott Laboratories’s dividend payout ratio is currently 94.03%.

Insider Activity at Abbott Laboratories

In related news, EVP Mary Moreland sold 3,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, November 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $116.00, for a total transaction of $406,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 100,791 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $11,691,756. This trade represents a 3.36% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 0.46% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts recently commented on ABT shares. Barclays assumed coverage on shares of Abbott Laboratories in a research note on Wednesday, October 7th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $120.00 price objective on the stock. Royal Bank Of Canada decreased their target price on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $130.00 to $125.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, October 22nd. Wolfe Research raised Abbott Laboratories from a “peer perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $130.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Thursday, August 13th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on Abbott Laboratories from $112.00 to $119.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 22nd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on Abbott Laboratories from $120.00 to $118.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, October 22nd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-one have given a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $118.32.

About Abbott Laboratories

Abbott Laboratories is a global healthcare company that develops, manufactures and markets medical devices, diagnostic tests, nutritional products and branded generic medicines. Its products serve patients and healthcare professionals in hospitals, clinics and other care settings.

Abbott’s offerings include the FreeStyle Libre continuous glucose monitoring system, cardiovascular and other medical devices, laboratory and rapid diagnostic tests, and nutrition brands such as Ensure and Similac.