Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) Shares Sold by Two Sigma Advisers LP

Two Sigma Advisers LP trimmed its position in shares of Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT - Free Report) by 64.4% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,393,082 shares of the healthcare product maker's stock after selling 2,515,118 shares during the quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP owned 0.08% of Abbott Laboratories worth $157,572,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Regent Peak Wealth Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Abbott Laboratories by 2.0% in the fourth quarter. Regent Peak Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 4,873 shares of the healthcare product maker's stock worth $551,000 after purchasing an additional 97 shares during the last quarter. Tallon Kerry Patrick purchased a new stake in Abbott Laboratories in the 4th quarter valued at about $200,000. Capital & Planning LLC grew its stake in Abbott Laboratories by 1.2% in the 4th quarter. Capital & Planning LLC now owns 8,673 shares of the healthcare product maker's stock worth $981,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC increased its position in shares of Abbott Laboratories by 17.0% during the fourth quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC now owns 50,340 shares of the healthcare product maker's stock worth $5,694,000 after acquiring an additional 7,316 shares during the period. Finally, Sax Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Abbott Laboratories during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $640,000. Institutional investors own 75.18% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts recently issued reports on ABT shares. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price objective on Abbott Laboratories from $135.00 to $137.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 17th. Barclays increased their price target on Abbott Laboratories from $158.00 to $159.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 17th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $136.00 to $147.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 17th. Bank of America raised their target price on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $133.00 to $150.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, March 10th. Finally, Argus upgraded shares of Abbott Laboratories to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $142.59.

Abbott Laboratories Stock Down 0.1%

Shares of ABT traded down $0.19 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $131.31. 4,399,990 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 6,134,793. The company has a market capitalization of $228.46 billion, a PE ratio of 17.16, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.52 and a beta of 0.74. The company has a quick ratio of 1.14, a current ratio of 1.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32. The business has a 50 day moving average of $129.77 and a 200 day moving average of $124.52. Abbott Laboratories has a 1-year low of $99.71 and a 1-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, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.07 by $0.02. Abbott Laboratories had a net margin of 31.95% and a return on equity of 20.74%. The business had revenue of $10.36 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $10.38 billion. Equities research analysts anticipate that Abbott Laboratories will post 5.14 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Abbott Laboratories

In related news, Director Sally E. Blount sold 2,600 shares of Abbott Laboratories stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $129.66, for a total transaction of $337,116.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 34,058 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,415,960.28. The trade was a 7.09% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Andrea F. Wainer sold 949 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $138.17, for a total transaction of $131,123.33. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 74,381 shares of the company's stock, valued at $10,277,222.77. This represents a 1.26% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 95,278 shares of company stock worth $12,745,859. 0.46% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.