Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) is S&CO Inc.'s 10th Largest Position

Key Points

• S&CO Inc. reduced its stake in Abbott Laboratories by 2.4%, now holding 256,264 shares valued at approximately $33.99 million, marking it as the firm's 10th largest position.
• Abbott Laboratories declared a quarterly dividend of $0.59, which will be paid on August 15th, representing an annual yield of 1.87%.
• Analysts have raised their price targets for Abbott Laboratories, with a consensus target of $144.47, reflecting a strong overall recommendation towards a 'Moderate Buy' rating.

S&CO Inc. decreased its position in shares of Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT - Free Report) by 2.4% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 256,264 shares of the healthcare product maker's stock after selling 6,382 shares during the quarter. Abbott Laboratories accounts for about 2.3% of S&CO Inc.'s holdings, making the stock its 10th biggest position. S&CO Inc.'s holdings in Abbott Laboratories were worth $33,993,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Abbott Laboratories by 383.1% during the 4th quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. now owns 8,358,698 shares of the healthcare product maker's stock worth $945,453,000 after purchasing an additional 6,628,310 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its position in shares of Abbott Laboratories by 15,420.4% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 5,102,648 shares of the healthcare product maker's stock worth $676,866,000 after purchasing an additional 5,069,771 shares during the last quarter. Capital International Investors raised its position in shares of Abbott Laboratories by 3.4% during the 4th quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 67,972,953 shares of the healthcare product maker's stock worth $7,688,160,000 after purchasing an additional 2,229,026 shares during the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp raised its position in shares of Abbott Laboratories by 10.3% during the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 22,056,860 shares of the healthcare product maker's stock worth $2,494,851,000 after purchasing an additional 2,060,650 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Invesco Ltd. raised its position in shares of Abbott Laboratories by 27.6% during the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 9,018,429 shares of the healthcare product maker's stock worth $1,020,074,000 after purchasing an additional 1,948,329 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.18% of the company's stock.

Abbott Laboratories Stock Up 0.9%

Abbott Laboratories stock traded up $1.13 during trading on Friday, reaching $127.32. 5,445,697 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 6,936,157. The company's 50-day moving average is $131.86 and its two-hundred day moving average is $130.26. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26, a quick ratio of 1.27 and a current ratio of 1.78. Abbott Laboratories has a 52-week low of $107.11 and a 52-week high of $141.23. The firm has a market cap of $221.52 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.95, a PEG ratio of 2.44 and a beta of 0.73.

Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 17th. The healthcare product maker reported $1.26 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting analysts' consensus estimates of $1.26. Abbott Laboratories had a net margin of 32.43% and a return on equity of 18.83%. The firm had revenue of $11.14 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $11.01 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.14 EPS. The firm's revenue was up 7.4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts predict that Abbott Laboratories will post 5.14 earnings per share for the current year.

Abbott Laboratories Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, July 15th will be given a $0.59 dividend. This represents a $2.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, July 15th. Abbott Laboratories's dividend payout ratio is presently 29.57%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

ABT has been the subject of several analyst reports. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price target on Abbott Laboratories from $135.00 to $145.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, April 17th. Leerink Partnrs upgraded Abbott Laboratories to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, June 16th. William Blair upgraded Abbott Laboratories to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Thursday, July 17th. Barclays boosted their price target on Abbott Laboratories from $158.00 to $159.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, April 17th. Finally, Mizuho boosted their price target on Abbott Laboratories from $130.00 to $140.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 16th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Abbott Laboratories currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $144.47.

About Abbott Laboratories

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.