Menora Mivtachim Holdings LTD. Sells 339,460 Shares of Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT)

Key Points

• Menora Mivtachim Holdings LTD. has reduced its stake in Abbott Laboratories by 23.7%, selling 339,460 shares and now holding 1,095,288 shares valued at approximately $145 million.
• Abbott Laboratories reported quarterly earnings with a revenue of $11.14 billion and earnings per share of $1.26, which matched analyst expectations.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.59 per share, representing an annual yield of 1.8% and a payout ratio of 29.57%.

Menora Mivtachim Holdings LTD. decreased its position in Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT - Free Report) by 23.7% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,095,288 shares of the healthcare product maker's stock after selling 339,460 shares during the period. Menora Mivtachim Holdings LTD. owned 0.06% of Abbott Laboratories worth $145,290,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Three Seasons Wealth LLC bought a new position in Abbott Laboratories in the fourth quarter valued at about $1,428,000. Kelly Financial Services LLC acquired a new position in Abbott Laboratories in the first quarter valued at about $216,000. Voleon Capital Management LP acquired a new position in Abbott Laboratories in the fourth quarter valued at about $273,000. Bank Pictet & Cie Europe AG lifted its stake in Abbott Laboratories by 1.9% in the fourth quarter. Bank Pictet & Cie Europe AG now owns 152,719 shares of the healthcare product maker's stock valued at $17,274,000 after buying an additional 2,774 shares during the period. Finally, Edge Financial Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Abbott Laboratories by 3.3% in the first quarter. Edge Financial Advisors LLC now owns 2,530 shares of the healthcare product maker's stock valued at $336,000 after buying an additional 81 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 75.18% of the company's stock.

Abbott Laboratories Stock Performance

NYSE:ABT opened at $131.66 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $229.15 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.50, a PEG ratio of 2.45 and a beta of 0.70. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $131.40 and a 200 day simple moving average of $131.18. The company has a current ratio of 1.82, a quick ratio of 1.30 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25. Abbott Laboratories has a 1-year low of $110.33 and a 1-year high of $141.23.

Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 17th. The healthcare product maker reported $1.26 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $1.26. The business had revenue of $11.14 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $11.01 billion. Abbott Laboratories had a return on equity of 18.32% and a net margin of 32.43%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 7.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.14 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that Abbott Laboratories will post 5.14 earnings per share for the current year.

Abbott Laboratories Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, July 15th were issued a $0.59 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, July 15th. This represents a $2.36 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.8%. Abbott Laboratories's payout ratio is currently 29.57%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Abbott Laboratories 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 value of $746,752.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 51,003 shares of the company's stock, valued at $6,862,453.65. The trade was a 9.81% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 0.46% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

ABT has been the topic of several analyst reports. Raymond James Financial cut their target price on Abbott Laboratories from $142.00 to $141.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, July 18th. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on Abbott Laboratories from $127.00 to $137.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 15th. Royal Bank Of Canada increased their target price on Abbott Laboratories from $145.00 to $147.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 15th. Mizuho raised their price target on Abbott Laboratories from $130.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 16th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company dropped 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. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $144.47.

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.

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