Lewis Asset Management LLC Raises Position in Abbott Laboratories $ABT

Key Points

• Lewis Asset Management LLC significantly increased its stake in Abbott Laboratories by 500.8% during the second quarter, acquiring an additional 13,310 shares, bringing its total holdings to 15,968 shares valued at approximately $2.17 million.
• Abbott Laboratories recently reported quarterly earnings of $1.26 per share, meeting analysts' expectations, with revenue increasing by 7.4% year-over-year to $11.14 billion.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.59 per share, equating to an annual yield of 1.7%, with the payment date set for November 17th.

Lewis Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT - Free Report) by 500.8% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 15,968 shares of the healthcare product maker's stock after buying an additional 13,310 shares during the period. Abbott Laboratories accounts for 1.0% of Lewis Asset Management LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 24th biggest position. Lewis Asset Management LLC's holdings in Abbott Laboratories were worth $2,172,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Abbott Laboratories by 0.7% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 169,823,136 shares of the healthcare product maker's stock valued at $22,527,039,000 after acquiring an additional 1,177,739 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its stake in shares of Abbott Laboratories by 12.8% in the first quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 29,763,415 shares of the healthcare product maker's stock worth $3,948,117,000 after buying an additional 3,371,113 shares in the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Abbott Laboratories by 29.2% during the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 15,985,797 shares of the healthcare product maker's stock valued at $2,120,516,000 after purchasing an additional 3,616,471 shares during the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA raised its holdings in shares of Abbott Laboratories by 12.8% during the first quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 14,451,305 shares of the healthcare product maker's stock valued at $1,916,966,000 after purchasing an additional 1,639,954 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Abbott Laboratories by 1.3% during the first quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 13,108,416 shares of the healthcare product maker's stock valued at $1,738,831,000 after purchasing an additional 168,095 shares during the last quarter. 75.18% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CFO Philip P. Boudreau sold 5,550 shares of the company's 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 owned 51,003 shares of the company's stock, valued at $6,862,453.65. This represents a 9.81% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.46% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have commented on the stock. William Blair upgraded shares of Abbott Laboratories to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 17th. Leerink Partners began coverage on shares of Abbott Laboratories in a research report on Monday, June 16th. They set a "market perform" rating and a $143.00 target price on the stock. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $127.00 to $137.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 15th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $147.00 to $142.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, July 18th. Finally, Mizuho lifted their target price on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $130.00 to $140.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 16th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have given a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $145.22.

Abbott Laboratories Price Performance

Abbott Laboratories stock traded up $0.78 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $136.82. 4,837,007 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 5,199,671. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25, a quick ratio of 1.30 and a current ratio of 1.82. The company has a market capitalization of $238.13 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.15, a P/E/G ratio of 2.58 and a beta of 0.69. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $130.56 and its 200-day simple moving average is $131.11. Abbott Laboratories has a 1 year low of $110.86 and a 1 year high of $141.23.

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

Abbott Laboratories Dividend Announcement

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

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.