Abbott Laboratories $ABT Shares Bought by Ninety One North America Inc.

Key Points

• Ninety One North America increased its stake in Abbott by 566.5% in Q4, owning 44,344 shares worth about $5.556 million after adding 37,691 shares during the period.
• Abbott beat Q1 estimates with adjusted EPS of $1.15 (vs. $1.14 est.) and revenue of $11.16B, set FY2026 guidance of $5.38–$5.58 EPS (including ~ $0.20 dilution from the Exact Sciences deal), and faces lowered price targets leaving an average analyst target of $121 and a "Moderate Buy" consensus.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.63 (annualized $2.52, yield 2.6%, ex-dividend Apr 15), while mixed news—preliminary settlement of infant‑formula suits and positive Cancerguard data vs. guidance cuts and margin pressure—is contributing to near‑term share volatility.

Ninety One North America Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT - Free Report) by 566.5% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 44,344 shares of the healthcare product maker's stock after buying an additional 37,691 shares during the period. Ninety One North America Inc.'s holdings in Abbott Laboratories were worth $5,556,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in ABT. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in Abbott Laboratories during the fourth quarter worth $27,000. Cloud Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in Abbott Laboratories during the third quarter worth $29,000. Guerra Advisors Inc acquired a new position in Abbott Laboratories during the third quarter worth $31,000. Bridge Generations Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Abbott Laboratories in the third quarter worth approximately $33,000. Finally, Copia Wealth Management purchased a new position in Abbott Laboratories in the third quarter worth approximately $38,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.18% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

ABT has been the subject of several analyst reports. Citigroup lowered their price objective on Abbott Laboratories from $136.00 to $108.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Friday. Oppenheimer lowered their price objective on Abbott Laboratories from $132.00 to $115.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Friday. Raymond James Financial lowered their price objective on Abbott Laboratories from $130.00 to $115.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Friday. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their price objective on Abbott Laboratories from $140.00 to $121.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 8th. Finally, Argus lowered their price objective on Abbott Laboratories from $150.00 to $140.00 in a research report on Tuesday, January 27th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eighteen have given a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Abbott Laboratories presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $121.00.

Abbott Laboratories Trading Up 1.5%

ABT opened at $96.89 on Friday. Abbott Laboratories has a 52 week low of $93.92 and a 52 week high of $139.06. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $107.89 and a 200-day simple moving average of $118.76. The firm has a market cap of $168.75 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.14, a P/E/G ratio of 1.57 and a beta of 0.79. The company has a quick ratio of 1.18, a current ratio of 1.58 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19.

Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 16th. The healthcare product maker reported $1.15 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.14 by $0.01. Abbott Laboratories had a return on equity of 17.71% and a net margin of 13.90%.The business had revenue of $11.16 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $10.99 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.09 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was up 7.8% on a year-over-year basis. 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. On average, equities analysts expect that Abbott Laboratories will post 5.14 earnings per share for the current year.

Abbott Laboratories Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 15th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, April 15th will be paid a $0.63 dividend. This represents a $2.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.6%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 15th. Abbott Laboratories's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 67.74%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, VP John A. Jr. Mccoy sold 585 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, March 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $115.58, for a total value of $67,614.30. Following the sale, the vice president directly owned 24,628 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,846,504.24. This trade represents a 2.32% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Mary K. Moreland sold 613 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, March 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $115.58, for a total value of $70,850.54. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 104,291 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,053,953.78. The trade was a 0.58% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 3,055 shares of company stock valued at $353,097. 0.46% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Abbott Laboratories News Summary

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

• Positive Sentiment: Preliminary settlement reached in six shareholder derivative suits tied to Abbott’s U.S. infant‑formula business, reducing litigation overhang for investors. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: New data on Cancerguard MCED (multi‑cancer early detection) presented at AACR 2026 — important for Abbott’s growth thesis since the Exact Sciences deal expanded its oncology diagnostics exposure. Continued clinical progress supports longer‑term revenue upside. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Insiders added roughly $3.1M of stock, and a number of analysts still see upside — some calling the post‑acquisition pullback a buying opportunity given valuation and Abbott’s dividend track record. Read More. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Q1 results: adjusted EPS $1.15 (vs. $1.14 est.) and revenue $11.16B (vs. $10.99B); company set FY 2026 adjusted EPS guidance to $5.38–$5.58 and Q2 guide to $1.25–$1.31, explicitly including ~$0.20 of dilution from the Exact Sciences acquisition. Investors are parsing beat vs. the guidance change. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Earnings call transcript and analyst commentary emphasize medical‑device strength offset by Diagnostics/Nutrition softness and acquisition-related margin pressure — useful for active traders but mixed for near‑term stock direction. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Market reaction: shares fell after the print because Abbott trimmed guidance and flagged Nutrition weakness and margin compression; coverage shows the takeover (≈$21–23B) is dilutive near term. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Many brokers lowered price targets and some cut forecasts following Q1/guidance — several firms kept positive ratings but reduced targets (examples include RBC, Jefferies, Raymond James, Citi and others), amplifying short‑term selling pressure. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Analyst notes and headlines highlighted the EPS guidance cut and Nutrition slump as primary reasons for the earlier drop — these remain catalysts to watch for the next quarter. Read More.

Abbott Laboratories 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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