Ipswich Investment Management Co. Inc. Sells 2,015 Shares of Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT)

Ipswich Investment Management Co. Inc. decreased its stake in Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT - Free Report) by 11.2% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 16,046 shares of the healthcare product maker's stock after selling 2,015 shares during the period. Ipswich Investment Management Co. Inc.'s holdings in Abbott Laboratories were worth $2,129,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in ABT. Redwood Park Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Abbott Laboratories during the fourth quarter valued at $25,000. Noble Wealth Management PBC acquired a new position in shares of Abbott Laboratories in the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. NewSquare Capital LLC boosted its position in shares of Abbott Laboratories by 78.4% during the 4th quarter. NewSquare Capital LLC now owns 239 shares of the healthcare product maker's stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 105 shares in the last quarter. WealthTrak Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in Abbott Laboratories during the fourth quarter worth approximately $28,000. Finally, Rialto Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Abbott Laboratories in the fourth quarter worth approximately $29,000. 75.18% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Abbott Laboratories Stock Down 1.4%

Abbott Laboratories stock traded down $1.83 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $132.18. 5,010,803 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 6,107,957. The company has a market capitalization of $229.97 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.14, a PEG ratio of 2.53 and a beta of 0.73. The business's 50 day moving average is $131.80 and its 200 day moving average is $126.62. Abbott Laboratories has a 52 week low of $99.71 and a 52 week high of $141.23. The company has a current ratio of 1.78, a quick ratio of 1.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26.

Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, April 16th. The healthcare product maker reported $1.09 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.07 by $0.02. The firm 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%. Analysts predict that Abbott Laboratories will post 5.14 earnings per share for the current year.

Abbott Laboratories Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, July 15th will be paid a $0.59 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, July 15th. This represents a $2.36 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.79%. Abbott Laboratories's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 30.61%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Sally E. Blount sold 2,600 shares of the company'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 value of $337,116.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 34,058 shares of the company's stock, 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 is available at this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.46% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on the company. Bank of America increased their price target on Abbott Laboratories from $133.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, March 10th. Leerink Partnrs upgraded shares of Abbott Laboratories to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their price objective on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $140.00 to $145.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, April 17th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $136.00 to $147.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 17th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their target price on Abbott Laboratories from $138.00 to $154.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 4th. Six investment 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 stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $142.61.

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.