Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) Shares Bought by Ascent Wealth Partners LLC

Ascent Wealth Partners LLC increased its stake in shares of Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT - Free Report) by 4.5% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 98,472 shares of the healthcare product maker's stock after purchasing an additional 4,285 shares during the quarter. Abbott Laboratories comprises about 1.8% of Ascent Wealth Partners LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 11th biggest position. Ascent Wealth Partners LLC's holdings in Abbott Laboratories were worth $13,062,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other large investors have also bought and sold shares of ABT. Redwood Park Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Abbott Laboratories during the fourth quarter worth $25,000. Hughes Financial Services LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Abbott Laboratories during the first quarter worth $27,000. WealthTrak Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Abbott Laboratories during the fourth quarter worth $28,000. Abound Financial LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Abbott Laboratories during the first quarter worth $28,000. Finally, Wormser Freres Gestion acquired a new stake in Abbott Laboratories in the 4th quarter valued at $32,000. 75.18% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts recently commented on the stock. Raymond James Financial reduced their target price on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $142.00 to $141.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Friday. Jefferies Financial Group raised shares of Abbott Laboratories from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $143.00 to $145.00 in a report on Friday. Leerink Partners assumed coverage on shares of Abbott Laboratories in a report on Monday, June 16th. They set a "market perform" rating and a $143.00 target price for the company. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $127.00 to $137.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 15th. Finally, Barclays lifted their target price on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $158.00 to $159.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, April 17th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $144.47.

Abbott Laboratories Stock Performance

NYSE ABT traded up $3.30 on Friday, reaching $123.81. 19,570,335 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 6,224,928. Abbott Laboratories has a one year low of $99.92 and a one year high of $141.23. The firm has a market capitalization of $215.41 billion, a PE ratio of 15.52, a PEG ratio of 2.35 and a beta of 0.73. The company's 50-day simple moving average is $132.98 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $129.56. The company has a current ratio of 1.78, a quick ratio of 1.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26.

Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 17th. The healthcare product maker reported $1.26 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate 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 for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $11.01 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.14 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 7.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts expect that Abbott Laboratories will post 5.14 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Abbott Laboratories Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, July 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.59 per share. This represents a $2.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.91%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, July 15th. Abbott Laboratories's dividend payout ratio is currently 29.57%.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Sally E. Blount sold 2,600 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $129.66, for a total transaction of $337,116.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 34,058 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,415,960.28. The trade was a 7.09% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.46% of the company's stock.

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.