Curat Global LLC Buys Shares of 5,135 Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT)

Curat Global LLC bought a new stake in shares of Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 5,135 shares of the healthcare product maker's stock, valued at approximately $681,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Redwood Park Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Abbott Laboratories in the fourth quarter worth $25,000. Noble Wealth Management PBC purchased a new stake in Abbott Laboratories in the fourth quarter worth $26,000. NewSquare Capital LLC grew its stake in Abbott Laboratories by 78.4% in the fourth quarter. NewSquare Capital LLC now owns 239 shares of the healthcare product maker's stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 105 shares during the period. WealthTrak Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in Abbott Laboratories in the fourth quarter worth $28,000. Finally, Rialto Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Abbott Laboratories in the fourth quarter worth $29,000. Institutional investors own 75.18% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Sally E. Blount sold 2,600 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $129.66, for a total transaction of $337,116.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 34,058 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,415,960.28. This trade represents a 7.09% decrease in their position. The sale 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 corporate insiders.

Abbott Laboratories Trading Down 0.2%

Shares of Abbott Laboratories stock traded down $0.33 on Friday, reaching $133.61. The company had a trading volume of 3,866,397 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,140,932. The firm has a market cap of $232.45 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.46, a P/E/G ratio of 2.52 and a beta of 0.73. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a current ratio of 1.60 and a quick ratio of 1.14. The firm's 50-day moving average price is $130.74 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $125.77. Abbott Laboratories has a 1 year low of $99.71 and a 1 year high of $141.23.

Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, April 16th. The healthcare product maker reported $1.09 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.07 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $10.36 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $10.38 billion. Abbott Laboratories had a return on equity of 20.74% and a net margin of 31.95%. As a group, research analysts predict that Abbott Laboratories will post 5.14 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages recently weighed in on ABT. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price target on Abbott Laboratories from $135.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 17th. Barclays increased their target price on Abbott Laboratories from $158.00 to $159.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 17th. Bank of America increased their target price on Abbott Laboratories from $133.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, March 10th. Raymond James increased their target price on Abbott Laboratories from $132.00 to $142.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 17th. Finally, Morgan Stanley increased their target price on Abbott Laboratories from $117.00 to $127.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 17th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $142.59.

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.