38,392 Shares in Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) Purchased by Davis Rea LTD.

Davis Rea LTD. purchased a new stake in Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT - Free Report) in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 38,392 shares of the healthcare product maker's stock, valued at approximately $5,093,000. Abbott Laboratories accounts for approximately 1.4% of Davis Rea LTD.'s holdings, making the stock its 24th biggest holding.

Other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Three Seasons Wealth LLC acquired a new position in Abbott Laboratories during the fourth quarter worth $1,428,000. Kelly Financial Services LLC acquired a new stake in Abbott Laboratories in the first quarter valued at $216,000. Voleon Capital Management LP acquired a new stake in Abbott Laboratories in the fourth quarter valued at $273,000. Bank Pictet & Cie Europe AG lifted its stake in Abbott Laboratories by 1.9% in the fourth quarter. Bank Pictet & Cie Europe AG now owns 152,719 shares of the healthcare product maker's stock valued at $17,274,000 after acquiring an additional 2,774 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Edge Financial Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Abbott Laboratories by 3.3% in the first quarter. Edge Financial Advisors LLC now owns 2,530 shares of the healthcare product maker's stock valued at $336,000 after acquiring an additional 81 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.18% of the company's stock.

Abbott Laboratories Price Performance

Abbott Laboratories stock traded up $0.89 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $126.53. 4,741,228 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 7,571,204. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $132.39 and a two-hundred day moving average of $129.88. Abbott Laboratories has a twelve month low of $99.92 and a twelve 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 company has a market cap of $220.15 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.86, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.38 and a beta of 0.73.

Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 17th. The healthcare product maker reported $1.26 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting analysts' consensus estimates of $1.26. Abbott Laboratories had a net margin of 32.43% and a return on equity of 18.83%. The company had revenue of $11.14 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $11.01 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.14 EPS. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 7.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts expect that Abbott Laboratories will post 5.14 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Abbott Laboratories Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, July 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 1.87%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, July 15th. Abbott Laboratories's dividend payout ratio is 29.57%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

ABT has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Piper Sandler reiterated an "overweight" rating and issued a $145.00 price target (up previously from $133.00) on shares of Abbott Laboratories in a research note on Thursday, April 17th. Royal Bank Of Canada increased their price target on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $145.00 to $147.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 15th. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of Abbott Laboratories from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and increased their price target for the company from $143.00 to $145.00 in a research note on Friday, July 18th. Barclays increased their price objective on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $158.00 to $159.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 17th. Finally, Mizuho increased their price objective on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $130.00 to $140.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 16th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $144.47.

Insider Transactions at Abbott Laboratories

In other Abbott Laboratories news, Director Sally E. Blount sold 2,600 shares of Abbott Laboratories stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $129.66, for a total transaction of $337,116.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 34,058 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,415,960.28. The trade was a 7.09% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 0.46% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.