Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec Raises Stock Position in Abbott Laboratories $ABT

Key Points

• Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec increased its stake in Abbott Laboratories by 112.8% during the first quarter, now holding 835,972 shares valued at approximately $110.89 million.
• Abbott Laboratories reported a quarterly EPS of $1.26, exceeding analysts' expectations, with a revenue of $11.14 billion, representing a 7.4% year-over-year increase.
• The firm declared a quarterly dividend of $0.59 per share, resulting in an annualized yield of 1.8%, with a payout ratio of 29.57%.

Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec lifted its stake in Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT - Free Report) by 112.8% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 835,972 shares of the healthcare product maker's stock after purchasing an additional 443,124 shares during the period. Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec's holdings in Abbott Laboratories were worth $110,892,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Abbott Laboratories by 0.7% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 169,823,136 shares of the healthcare product maker's stock worth $22,527,039,000 after buying an additional 1,177,739 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its holdings in Abbott Laboratories by 12.8% in the 1st quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 29,763,415 shares of the healthcare product maker's stock worth $3,948,117,000 after buying an additional 3,371,113 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp boosted its holdings in Abbott Laboratories by 10.3% in 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 buying an additional 2,060,650 shares during the period. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Abbott Laboratories by 29.2% in 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 buying an additional 3,616,471 shares during the period. Finally, Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA boosted its holdings in Abbott Laboratories by 12.8% in the 1st quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 14,451,305 shares of the healthcare product maker's stock worth $1,916,966,000 after buying an additional 1,639,954 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 75.18% of the company's stock.

Abbott Laboratories Trading Up 0.0%

Abbott Laboratories stock traded up $0.01 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $131.47. The stock had a trading volume of 4,674,515 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,499,934. The company has a quick ratio of 1.30, a current ratio of 1.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25. Abbott Laboratories has a 52-week low of $110.86 and a 52-week high of $141.23. The firm has a market cap of $228.81 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.47, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.49 and a beta of 0.70. The company has a fifty day moving average of $131.01 and a 200 day moving average of $131.33.

Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data 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 18.32%. The company had revenue of $11.14 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $11.01 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.14 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 7.4% on a year-over-year basis. Abbott Laboratories has set its FY 2025 guidance at 5.100-5.200 EPS. Q3 2025 guidance at 1.280-1.320 EPS. On average, analysts anticipate that Abbott Laboratories will post 5.14 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Abbott Laboratories Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, July 15th were given a $0.59 dividend. This represents a $2.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, July 15th. Abbott Laboratories's dividend payout ratio is 29.57%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CFO Philip P. Boudreau sold 5,550 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $134.55, for a total value of $746,752.50. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 51,003 shares of the company's stock, valued at $6,862,453.65. This represents a 9.81% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.46% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Raymond James Financial dropped 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, July 18th. 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 price objective for the company. Mizuho increased their price objective on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $130.00 to $140.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 16th. BTIG Research dropped their price objective on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $148.00 to $145.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Friday, July 18th. Finally, Leerink Partnrs raised shares of Abbott Laboratories to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, June 16th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have given a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $144.47.

Abbott Laboratories Company 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.