Flossbach Von Storch SE Reduces Stock Holdings in Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT)

Flossbach Von Storch SE decreased its holdings in shares of Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT - Free Report) by 19.8% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 6,951,496 shares of the healthcare product maker's stock after selling 1,720,929 shares during the period. Abbott Laboratories makes up about 4.0% of Flossbach Von Storch SE's portfolio, making the stock its 5th largest position. Flossbach Von Storch SE owned approximately 0.40% of Abbott Laboratories worth $922,116,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Redwood Park Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Abbott Laboratories in the fourth quarter valued at about $25,000. WealthTrak Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Abbott Laboratories in the fourth quarter worth $28,000. Abound Financial LLC bought a new position in shares of Abbott Laboratories in the first quarter worth $28,000. Wormser Freres Gestion purchased a new stake in shares of Abbott Laboratories in the fourth quarter worth $32,000. Finally, JCIC Asset Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Abbott Laboratories in the first quarter worth $32,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.18% of the company's stock.

Abbott Laboratories Price Performance

NYSE:ABT traded up $0.71 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $133.93. 1,615,214 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 6,144,709. The company has a market cap of $233.02 billion, a PE ratio of 17.37, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.53 and a beta of 0.73. Abbott Laboratories has a 1 year low of $99.71 and a 1 year high of $141.23. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26, a quick ratio of 1.27 and a current ratio of 1.78. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $133.49 and its 200 day simple moving average is $128.72.

Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 16th. The healthcare product maker reported $1.09 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.07 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $10.36 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $10.38 billion. Abbott Laboratories had a net margin of 31.89% and a return on equity of 19.01%. Sell-side analysts expect that Abbott Laboratories will post 5.14 EPS for the current year.

Abbott Laboratories Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, July 15th will be given a $0.59 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, July 15th. This represents a $2.36 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.76%. Abbott Laboratories's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 30.61%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Abbott Laboratories news, Director Sally E. Blount sold 2,600 shares of the stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the director directly owned 34,058 shares in the company, valued at $4,415,960.28. This represents a 7.09% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 0.46% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ABT has been the topic of several research reports. Piper Sandler reissued an "overweight" rating and set a $145.00 price target (up from $133.00) on shares of Abbott Laboratories in a research note on Thursday, April 17th. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their price objective on Abbott Laboratories from $140.00 to $145.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 17th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on Abbott Laboratories from $136.00 to $147.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 17th. Jefferies Financial Group upped their target price on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $135.00 to $137.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, April 17th. Finally, Leerink Partnrs raised shares of Abbott Laboratories to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, June 16th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $143.11.

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.