Biltmore Family Office LLC Raises Holdings in Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT)

Key Points

• Biltmore Family Office LLC increased its stake in Abbott Laboratories by 8.5%, acquiring an additional 2,515 shares, bringing their total holdings to 31,946 shares valued at approximately $4.24 million.
• Abbott Laboratories recently reported quarterly earnings of $1.26 per share, meeting analysts' expectations, with a year-over-year revenue growth of 7.4% to $11.14 billion.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.59 per share, representing an annualized yield of 1.8% and a payout ratio of 29.57%.

Biltmore Family Office LLC grew its stake in shares of Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT - Free Report) by 8.5% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 31,946 shares of the healthcare product maker's stock after acquiring an additional 2,515 shares during the quarter. Abbott Laboratories comprises about 0.7% of Biltmore Family Office LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 24th biggest holding. Biltmore Family Office LLC's holdings in Abbott Laboratories were worth $4,238,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of ABT. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. grew its position in Abbott Laboratories by 383.1% in the fourth quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. now owns 8,358,698 shares of the healthcare product maker's stock valued at $945,453,000 after acquiring an additional 6,628,310 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its holdings 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 valued at $676,866,000 after purchasing an additional 5,069,771 shares during the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. increased its position in Abbott Laboratories by 29.2% during the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 15,985,797 shares of the healthcare product maker's stock worth $2,120,516,000 after purchasing an additional 3,616,471 shares in the last quarter. Capital International Investors lifted its stake in Abbott Laboratories by 3.4% in the 4th quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 67,972,953 shares of the healthcare product maker's stock valued at $7,688,160,000 after purchasing an additional 2,229,026 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Northern Trust Corp boosted its position in Abbott Laboratories by 10.3% in the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 22,056,860 shares of the healthcare product maker's stock valued at $2,494,851,000 after buying an additional 2,060,650 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 75.18% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on ABT. Piper Sandler restated an "overweight" rating and set a $145.00 price objective (up previously from $133.00) on shares of Abbott Laboratories in a research report on Thursday, April 17th. BTIG Research decreased their price target on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $148.00 to $145.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, July 18th. Royal Bank Of Canada increased their price objective on Abbott Laboratories from $145.00 to $147.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 15th. Evercore ISI increased their price target on Abbott Laboratories from $140.00 to $145.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 8th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on Abbott Laboratories from $147.00 to $142.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, July 18th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Abbott Laboratories currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $144.47.

Abbott Laboratories Stock Up 0.1%

NYSE ABT traded up $0.11 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $129.51. 7,037,183 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 6,882,090. Abbott Laboratories has a 52-week low of $109.76 and a 52-week high of $141.23. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $131.52 and a 200 day simple moving average of $131.15. The firm has a market cap of $225.41 billion, a PE ratio of 16.23, a PEG ratio of 2.48 and a beta of 0.70. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25, a current ratio of 1.82 and a quick ratio of 1.30.

Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 17th. The healthcare product maker reported $1.26 EPS for the quarter, meeting analysts' consensus estimates of $1.26. Abbott Laboratories had a net margin of 32.43% and a return on equity of 18.32%. The firm had revenue of $11.14 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $11.01 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.14 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 7.4% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Abbott Laboratories will post 5.14 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Abbott Laboratories Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, July 15th will be given a dividend of $0.59 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, July 15th. This represents a $2.36 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.8%. Abbott Laboratories's dividend payout ratio is presently 29.57%.

Insider Activity at Abbott Laboratories

In other Abbott Laboratories news, CFO Philip P. Boudreau sold 5,550 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $134.55, for a total transaction of $746,752.50. Following the sale, the chief financial officer owned 51,003 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,862,453.65. This trade represents a 9.81% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.46% of the stock is 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.