717,610 Abbott Laboratories $ABT Shares Sold by Vontobel Holding Ltd.

Key Points

• Vontobel Holding reduced its Abbott Laboratories stake by 81.2%, selling 717,610 shares in the third quarter and retaining 166,623 shares valued at approximately $16.5 million. Institutional investors collectively own 75.18% of Abbott’s stock.
• Abbott reported quarterly revenue of $12.59 billion and adjusted earnings of $1.31 per share, exceeding analyst expectations, while revenue increased 13% year over year.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.63 per share, equivalent to an annualized $2.52 dividend and a 2.4% yield. Analysts maintain a “Moderate Buy” consensus rating with an average price target of $118.88, above the reported share price of $104.79.

Vontobel Holding Ltd. trimmed its holdings in shares of Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT - Free Report) by 81.2% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 166,623 shares of the healthcare product maker's stock after selling 717,610 shares during the period. Vontobel Holding Ltd.'s holdings in Abbott Laboratories were worth $16,467,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. St. Johns Investment Management Company LLC increased its holdings in shares of Abbott Laboratories by 1.0% in the second quarter. St. Johns Investment Management Company LLC now owns 9,859 shares of the healthcare product maker's stock worth $895,000 after buying an additional 101 shares during the period. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Abbott Laboratories by 1.2% during the 3rd quarter. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC now owns 8,448 shares of the healthcare product maker's stock valued at $835,000 after acquiring an additional 102 shares during the period. WealthBridge Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in Abbott Laboratories by 1.7% during the 3rd quarter. WealthBridge Capital Management LLC now owns 6,185 shares of the healthcare product maker's stock valued at $611,000 after acquiring an additional 104 shares during the period. Davidson Investment Advisors boosted its holdings in Abbott Laboratories by 3.6% during the 2nd quarter. Davidson Investment Advisors now owns 3,084 shares of the healthcare product maker's stock valued at $280,000 after acquiring an additional 106 shares during the period. Finally, Howard Financial Services LTD. grew its position in Abbott Laboratories by 4.7% during the 2nd quarter. Howard Financial Services LTD. now owns 2,451 shares of the healthcare product maker's stock worth $222,000 after acquiring an additional 111 shares during the last quarter. 75.18% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Abbott Laboratories Stock Performance

Abbott Laboratories stock opened at $104.79 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.38, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57. The firm has a market cap of $181.32 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.91, a P/E/G ratio of 1.94 and a beta of 0.59. Abbott Laboratories has a 1-year low of $81.97 and a 1-year high of $132.02. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $105.91 and a 200-day moving average of $98.31.

Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 16th. The healthcare product maker reported $1.31 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.28 by $0.03. Abbott Laboratories had a return on equity of 17.69% and a net margin of 11.65%. The company had revenue of $12.59 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $12.52 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.26 EPS. Abbott Laboratories's revenue was up 13.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts expect that Abbott Laboratories will post 5.52 EPS for the current year.

Abbott Laboratories Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 16th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, October 15th will be issued a $0.63 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, October 15th. This represents a $2.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.4%. Abbott Laboratories's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 81.55%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have commented on the company. Citigroup lifted their price target on Abbott Laboratories from $108.00 to $112.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, July 17th. Wolfe Research raised Abbott Laboratories from a "peer perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $130.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Thursday, August 13th. Rothschild & Co Redburn raised Abbott Laboratories from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and increased their price objective for the company from $119.00 to $127.00 in a research note on Friday, October 2nd. Barclays assumed coverage on shares of Abbott Laboratories in a report on Wednesday, October 7th. They issued an "overweight" rating and a $120.00 target price on the stock. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $110.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, July 17th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-one have given a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Abbott Laboratories currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $118.88.

Abbott Laboratories Profile

Abbott Laboratories is a global healthcare company that develops, manufactures and markets a broad range of medical products and services. Founded in 1888 by Wallace C. Abbott, the company is headquartered in Abbott Park, Illinois, and serves patients, healthcare providers and consumers in markets around the world.

Abbott operates across four principal businesses: medical devices, diagnostics, nutrition and established pharmaceutical products. Its offerings include glucose-monitoring systems such as FreeStyle Libre; cardiovascular devices, including stents and structural heart products; laboratory and point-of-care diagnostic systems; and branded generic medicines in areas such as gastroenterology, women's health and cardiometabolic care.

The company's nutrition portfolio includes infant and pediatric products such as Similac and PediaSure, adult nutritional products such as Ensure, and rehydration products such as Pedialyte.

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