Covea Finance Buys 91,800 Shares of Abbott Laboratories $ABT

Key Points

• Covea Finance increased its stake in Abbott Laboratories by 31.3% during the second quarter, owning a total of 385,254 shares worth approximately $52.4 million.
• Abbott Laboratories reported quarterly earnings of $1.26 EPS, aligning with analysts' expectations, and experienced a 7.4% year-over-year revenue growth of $11.14 billion.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.59 per share, with an ex-dividend date of October 15th, representing an annualized yield of 1.7%.

Covea Finance raised its stake in shares of Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT - Free Report) by 31.3% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 385,254 shares of the healthcare product maker's stock after purchasing an additional 91,800 shares during the period. Abbott Laboratories accounts for approximately 1.9% of Covea Finance's investment portfolio, making the stock its 11th biggest position. Covea Finance's holdings in Abbott Laboratories were worth $52,398,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Hughes Financial Services LLC acquired a new stake in Abbott Laboratories during the 1st quarter worth about $27,000. Abound Financial LLC bought a new position in Abbott Laboratories in the 1st quarter valued at about $28,000. Elequin Capital LP bought a new position in Abbott Laboratories in the 1st quarter valued at about $30,000. JCIC Asset Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Abbott Laboratories during the 1st quarter worth approximately $32,000. Finally, Vision Financial Markets LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Abbott Laboratories in the first quarter worth $33,000. 75.18% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

ABT has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Leerink Partnrs upgraded Abbott Laboratories to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, June 16th. Leerink Partners began coverage on Abbott Laboratories in a research report on Monday, June 16th. They set a "market perform" rating and a $143.00 price target on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on Abbott Laboratories from $147.00 to $142.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, July 18th. Evercore ISI raised their price target on Abbott Laboratories from $140.00 to $145.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 8th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group upgraded Abbott Laboratories from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and raised their price target for the company from $143.00 to $145.00 in a research report on Friday, July 18th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have assigned a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Abbott Laboratories currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $145.22.

Abbott Laboratories Stock Performance

Shares of ABT opened at $136.82 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.30, a current ratio of 1.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25. The business's 50 day moving average price is $130.56 and its 200-day moving average price is $131.11. Abbott Laboratories has a 52 week low of $110.86 and a 52 week high of $141.23. The stock has a market cap of $238.13 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.15, a P/E/G ratio of 2.58 and a beta of 0.69.

Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 17th. The healthcare product maker reported $1.26 EPS for the quarter, hitting analysts' consensus estimates of $1.26. Abbott Laboratories had a return on equity of 18.32% and a net margin of 32.43%.The firm had revenue of $11.14 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $11.01 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.14 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 7.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Abbott Laboratories has set its FY 2025 guidance at 5.100-5.200 EPS. Q3 2025 guidance at 1.280-1.320 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that Abbott Laboratories will post 5.14 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Abbott Laboratories Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 17th. Investors of record on Wednesday, October 15th will be issued a $0.59 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, October 15th. This represents a $2.36 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.7%. Abbott Laboratories's payout ratio is presently 29.57%.

Insider Activity at Abbott Laboratories

In related news, CFO Philip P. Boudreau sold 5,550 shares of Abbott Laboratories stock in a transaction on Friday, August 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $134.55, for a total transaction 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. The trade was a 9.81% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed 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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.