Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. Increases Position in Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT)

Key Points

• Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. significantly increased its holdings in Abbott Laboratories by 200.6%, now owning 460,012 shares valued at approximately $61.02 million.
• Analysts have a generally positive outlook on Abbott Laboratories, with multiple upgrades to their price targets, ranging from $140.00 to $145.00, and an average rating of "Moderate Buy".
• Abbott Laboratories reported a revenue of $11.14 billion in its latest quarterly earnings, surpassing expectations, with a solid earnings per share (EPS) of $1.26.

Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. lifted its holdings in Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT - Free Report) by 200.6% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 460,012 shares of the healthcare product maker's stock after buying an additional 306,991 shares during the quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd.'s holdings in Abbott Laboratories were worth $61,021,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Donoghue Forlines LLC bought a new position in Abbott Laboratories in the first quarter worth approximately $2,293,000. Zions Bancorporation National Association UT bought a new stake in Abbott Laboratories during the 1st quarter valued at $561,000. Forsta AP Fonden boosted its position in Abbott Laboratories by 14.7% during the 1st quarter. Forsta AP Fonden now owns 483,700 shares of the healthcare product maker's stock valued at $64,163,000 after acquiring an additional 62,000 shares in the last quarter. Savvy Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Abbott Laboratories by 2.1% during the 1st quarter. Savvy Advisors Inc. now owns 20,668 shares of the healthcare product maker's stock valued at $2,742,000 after purchasing an additional 428 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Caisse Des Depots ET Consignations lifted its holdings in shares of Abbott Laboratories by 28.9% during the 1st quarter. Caisse Des Depots ET Consignations now owns 15,186 shares of the healthcare product maker's stock valued at $2,014,000 after purchasing an additional 3,409 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 75.18% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CFO Philip P. Boudreau sold 5,550 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $134.55, for a total value of $746,752.50. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 51,003 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,862,453.65. This represents a 9.81% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.46% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have recently commented on ABT shares. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on Abbott Laboratories from $147.00 to $142.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Friday, July 18th. Evercore ISI raised their target price on Abbott Laboratories from $140.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 8th. Raymond James Financial reduced their target price on Abbott Laboratories from $142.00 to $141.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, July 18th. Stifel Nicolaus raised their target price on Abbott Laboratories from $135.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 17th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada raised their target price on Abbott Laboratories from $145.00 to $147.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 15th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $144.47.

Abbott Laboratories Price Performance

Shares of Abbott Laboratories stock traded down $1.71 on Wednesday, hitting $129.31. 3,800,586 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 6,860,766. The stock has a market capitalization of $225.06 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.17, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.49 and a beta of 0.70. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $131.60 and a 200 day moving average price of $131.16. Abbott Laboratories has a 1-year low of $107.71 and a 1-year high of $141.23. 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 (NYSE:ABT - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, July 17th. The healthcare product maker reported $1.26 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $1.26. The business 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 18.32% and a net margin of 32.43%. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 7.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.14 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Abbott Laboratories will post 5.14 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Abbott Laboratories Dividend Announcement

The firm 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 $0.59 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, July 15th. This represents a $2.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.8%. Abbott Laboratories's dividend payout ratio is currently 29.57%.

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.