Abbott Laboratories $ABT Shares Acquired by Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund

Key Points

• Fjarde AP Fonden increased its stake in Abbott Laboratories by 61.4% in the first quarter, buying an additional 336,450 shares and bringing its total to 884,654 shares worth about $90.8 million.
• Abbott reported better-than-expected first-quarter results, with EPS of $1.15 and revenue of $11.16 billion, and it issued full-year and second-quarter guidance that reinforces continued growth expectations.
• Analyst sentiment remains broadly positive, while the stock also gained support from new bullish coverage, a diabetes-device compatibility launch with Tandem Diabetes Care, and the DOJ ending its criminal formula probe, which removed a major legal overhang.

Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund boosted its holdings in Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT - Free Report) by 61.4% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 884,654 shares of the healthcare product maker's stock after purchasing an additional 336,450 shares during the quarter. Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund owned approximately 0.05% of Abbott Laboratories worth $90,827,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. MidAtlantic Capital Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Abbott Laboratories in the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. Cornerstone Financial Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Abbott Laboratories during the 4th quarter worth about $25,000. Purpose Unlimited Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Abbott Laboratories in the fourth quarter worth approximately $25,000. Portfolio Resources Advisor Group Inc. purchased a new stake in Abbott Laboratories in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Finally, Abound Financial LLC acquired a new position in Abbott Laboratories during the fourth quarter worth approximately $26,000. 75.18% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CFO Philip P. Boudreau purchased 2,200 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 23rd. The shares were purchased at an average price of $91.50 per share, with a total value of $201,300.00. Following the purchase, the chief financial officer directly owned 2,200 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $201,300. This represents a ∞ increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Daniel J. Starks acquired 10,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, April 27th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $92.65 per share, for a total transaction of $926,500.00. Following the acquisition, the director directly owned 6,751,103 shares in the company, valued at $625,489,692.95. This represents a 0.15% increase in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders own 0.46% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have weighed in on ABT. Oppenheimer decreased their price target on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $132.00 to $115.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, April 17th. Piper Sandler restated an "overweight" rating and set a $115.00 price objective on shares of Abbott Laboratories in a report on Monday, June 22nd. Mizuho cut their target price on Abbott Laboratories from $125.00 to $115.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, April 17th. Barclays lowered their price target on Abbott Laboratories from $144.00 to $143.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 20th. Finally, TD Cowen decreased their target price on Abbott Laboratories from $137.00 to $115.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Friday, April 17th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty have assigned a Buy rating, four have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $118.42.

Abbott Laboratories Trading Up 3.3%

Shares of ABT opened at $95.25 on Friday. Abbott Laboratories has a 12 month low of $81.97 and a 12 month high of $137.49. The stock's 50-day moving average is $88.88 and its two-hundred day moving average is $104.41. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56, a current ratio of 1.39 and a quick ratio of 1.01. The stock has a market cap of $165.91 billion, a PE ratio of 26.68, a P/E/G ratio of 1.59 and a beta of 0.61.

Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, April 16th. The healthcare product maker reported $1.15 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.14 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $11.16 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $10.99 billion. Abbott Laboratories had a return on equity of 17.62% and a net margin of 13.90%.The company's revenue was up 7.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.09 EPS. Abbott Laboratories has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.380-5.580 EPS and its Q2 2026 guidance at 1.250-1.310 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that Abbott Laboratories will post 5.48 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Abbott Laboratories Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 17th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, July 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.63 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, July 15th. This represents a $2.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.6%. Abbott Laboratories's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 70.59%.

Key Headlines Impacting Abbott Laboratories

Here are the key news stories impacting Abbott Laboratories this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Robert W. Baird initiated coverage on Abbott with an “outperform” rating and a $121 price target, signaling meaningful upside from current levels. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Baird’s bullish view follows a broader positive analyst backdrop, with another report highlighting Abbott among Wednesday’s notable Wall Street research calls. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Abbott also benefited from news that Tandem Diabetes Care launched compatibility for its t:slim X2 insulin pump with Abbott’s FreeStyle Libre 3 Plus sensor in five international markets, which may support adoption of Abbott’s diabetes device ecosystem. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Abbott cleared a major legal risk after the DOJ ended its criminal formula probe, removing a potential overhang that had weighed on the stock. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Some recent coverage compares Abbott with Intuitive Surgical as a healthcare investment idea, but this is more commentary than a direct catalyst for the shares. Article Title

Abbott Laboratories Company Profile

Abbott Laboratories is a global healthcare company headquartered in Abbott Park, Illinois, that develops, manufactures and markets a broad portfolio of medical products and services. Founded in 1888, Abbott operates through multiple business areas that focus on diagnostics, medical devices, nutritionals and established pharmaceuticals. The company supplies hospitals, clinics, laboratories, retailers and direct-to-consumer channels with products intended to diagnose, treat and manage a wide range of health conditions.

In diagnostics, Abbott provides laboratory and point-of-care testing platforms and assays used to detect infectious diseases, chronic conditions and biomarkers; its Alinity family of instruments and rapid-test solutions are examples of this capability.

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