TCTC Holdings LLC Trims Position in Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT)

Key Points

• TCTC Holdings LLC reduced its stake in Abbott Laboratories by 3.7%, holding 99,003 shares worth approximately $13.13 million after selling 3,815 shares in the first quarter.
• Abbott Laboratories reported earnings of $1.26 per share for the quarter, exceeding revenue expectations with $11.14 billion, marking a 7.4% increase compared to the previous year.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.59, translating to an annual yield of 1.87%, to be paid on August 15th to stockholders of record.

TCTC Holdings LLC lessened its holdings in Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT - Free Report) by 3.7% in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 99,003 shares of the healthcare product maker's stock after selling 3,815 shares during the quarter. TCTC Holdings LLC's holdings in Abbott Laboratories were worth $13,133,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Kirtland Hills Capital Management LLC grew its stake in Abbott Laboratories by 8.3% in the 1st quarter. Kirtland Hills Capital Management LLC now owns 4,633 shares of the healthcare product maker's stock valued at $607,000 after purchasing an additional 357 shares during the period. Meeder Advisory Services Inc. grew its stake in Abbott Laboratories by 11.3% in the 1st quarter. Meeder Advisory Services Inc. now owns 30,943 shares of the healthcare product maker's stock valued at $4,105,000 after purchasing an additional 3,149 shares during the period. Pinnacle Wealth Management Advisory Group LLC grew its stake in Abbott Laboratories by 6.4% in the 1st quarter. Pinnacle Wealth Management Advisory Group LLC now owns 5,965 shares of the healthcare product maker's stock valued at $791,000 after purchasing an additional 357 shares during the period. Foundations Investment Advisors LLC grew its stake in Abbott Laboratories by 10.7% in the 1st quarter. Foundations Investment Advisors LLC now owns 10,464 shares of the healthcare product maker's stock valued at $1,388,000 after purchasing an additional 1,013 shares during the period. Finally, Baldwin Investment Management LLC grew its stake in Abbott Laboratories by 4.8% in the 1st quarter. Baldwin Investment Management LLC now owns 37,455 shares of the healthcare product maker's stock valued at $4,968,000 after purchasing an additional 1,711 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 75.18% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have issued reports on ABT. Evercore ISI upped their price objective on Abbott Laboratories from $140.00 to $145.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 8th. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price target on Abbott Laboratories from $135.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 17th. Royal Bank Of Canada increased their price target on Abbott Laboratories from $145.00 to $147.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 15th. Barclays increased their price target on Abbott Laboratories from $158.00 to $159.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 17th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on Abbott Laboratories from $147.00 to $142.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, July 18th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Abbott Laboratories currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $144.47.

Abbott Laboratories Price Performance

Shares of ABT traded up $1.18 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $127.37. 3,011,899 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 6,930,289. The stock has a market cap of $221.60 billion, a PE ratio of 15.96, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.44 and a beta of 0.73. 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 firm's 50 day simple moving average is $131.86 and its 200-day simple moving average is $130.26. Abbott Laboratories has a 12 month low of $107.11 and a 12 month high of $141.23.

Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 17th. The healthcare product maker reported $1.26 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting analysts' consensus estimates of $1.26. The company had revenue of $11.14 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $11.01 billion. Abbott Laboratories had a return on equity of 18.83% and a net margin of 32.43%. Abbott Laboratories's revenue for the quarter was up 7.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.14 EPS. Equities analysts expect that Abbott Laboratories will post 5.14 EPS for the current 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 issued a dividend of $0.59 per share. This represents a $2.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, July 15th. Abbott Laboratories's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 29.57%.

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.