Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) Stock Position Lessened by Westwood Holdings Group Inc.

Westwood Holdings Group Inc. trimmed its holdings in Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT - Free Report) by 0.4% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 1,397,340 shares of the healthcare product maker's stock after selling 5,521 shares during the quarter. Abbott Laboratories accounts for about 1.2% of Westwood Holdings Group Inc.'s holdings, making the stock its 9th biggest holding. Westwood Holdings Group Inc. owned approximately 0.08% of Abbott Laboratories worth $158,053,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. St. Clair Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Abbott Laboratories in the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,715,000. Triglav Skladi D.O.O. bought a new stake in shares of Abbott Laboratories in the 4th quarter worth approximately $3,405,000. Texas Bank & Trust Co bought a new stake in shares of Abbott Laboratories in the 4th quarter worth approximately $2,080,000. Tidal Investments LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Abbott Laboratories by 51.7% in the 4th quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 162,823 shares of the healthcare product maker's stock worth $18,417,000 after acquiring an additional 55,515 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Tolleson Wealth Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Abbott Laboratories by 51.4% in the 4th quarter. Tolleson Wealth Management Inc. now owns 3,430 shares of the healthcare product maker's stock worth $388,000 after acquiring an additional 1,165 shares during the last quarter. 75.18% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Abbott Laboratories Trading Down 0.1%

NYSE ABT traded down $0.19 during trading on Friday, hitting $131.31. The company had a trading volume of 6,144,711 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,135,908. The company has a current ratio of 1.60, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32. The company's fifty day moving average is $129.87 and its 200-day moving average is $124.62. The company has a market cap of $228.46 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.16, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.52 and a beta of 0.74. Abbott Laboratories has a one year low of $99.71 and a one year high of $141.23.

Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 16th. The healthcare product maker reported $1.09 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.07 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $10.36 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $10.38 billion. Abbott Laboratories had a net margin of 31.95% and a return on equity of 20.74%. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Abbott Laboratories will post 5.14 earnings per share for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

ABT has been the topic of several analyst reports. Argus raised shares of Abbott Laboratories to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $117.00 to $127.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 17th. Raymond James lifted their target price on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $132.00 to $142.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 17th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Abbott Laboratories from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their target price on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $138.00 to $154.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 4th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Abbott Laboratories presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $142.59.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Abbott Laboratories news, EVP Andrea F. Wainer sold 949 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $138.17, for a total transaction of $131,123.33. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 74,381 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,277,222.77. This trade represents a 1.26% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Eric Shroff sold 562 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $138.17, for a total transaction of $77,651.54. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 31,970 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,417,294.90. This represents a 1.73% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 95,278 shares of company stock worth $12,745,859 in the last three months. 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.