Pettee Investors Inc. Cuts Position in Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT)

Pettee Investors Inc. lessened its holdings in Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT - Free Report) by 14.9% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 20,027 shares of the healthcare product maker's stock after selling 3,514 shares during the period. Abbott Laboratories comprises 1.6% of Pettee Investors Inc.'s holdings, making the stock its 19th biggest holding. Pettee Investors Inc.'s holdings in Abbott Laboratories were worth $2,657,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Redwood Park Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Abbott Laboratories in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Hughes Financial Services LLC bought a new stake in Abbott Laboratories in the first quarter valued at approximately $27,000. WealthTrak Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in Abbott Laboratories in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Abound Financial LLC bought a new stake in Abbott Laboratories in the first quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Finally, Wormser Freres Gestion bought a new stake in Abbott Laboratories in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Institutional investors own 75.18% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have issued reports on ABT shares. Leerink Partnrs raised Abbott Laboratories to a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, June 16th. Mizuho upped their target price on Abbott Laboratories from $130.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their target price on Abbott Laboratories from $145.00 to $147.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on Abbott Laboratories from $136.00 to $147.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 17th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus upped their target price on Abbott Laboratories from $135.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 17th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $144.33.

Abbott Laboratories Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:ABT traded down $10.99 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $120.76. The stock had a trading volume of 27,541,366 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,221,910. 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 $210.09 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.66, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.50 and a beta of 0.73. Abbott Laboratories has a 1 year low of $99.71 and a 1 year high of $141.23. The business's 50 day moving average price is $133.43 and its 200 day moving average price is $129.32.

Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 17th. The healthcare product maker reported $1.26 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.25 by $0.01. Abbott Laboratories had a return on equity of 19.01% and a net margin of 31.89%. The business had revenue of $11.14 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $11.01 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.14 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was up 7.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts expect that Abbott Laboratories will post 5.14 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Abbott Laboratories Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, July 15th will be paid a $0.59 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, July 15th. This represents a $2.36 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.95%. Abbott Laboratories's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 30.61%.

Insider Transactions at Abbott Laboratories

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