Merit Financial Group LLC Purchases 6,900 Shares of Abbott Laboratories $ABT

Key Points

• Merit Financial Group LLC increased its holdings in Abbott Laboratories by 12.7%, acquiring an additional 6,900 shares, bringing its total shares to 61,229, worth approximately $8.33 million.
• Abbott Laboratories reported a quarterly earnings per share (EPS) of $1.26, aligning with analyst estimates, and revenue of $11.14 billion, which surpasses expectations.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.59 per share, set to be paid on November 17th, with an annualized yield of 1.8% and a payout ratio of 29.57%.

Merit Financial Group LLC raised its position in Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT - Free Report) by 12.7% in the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 61,229 shares of the healthcare product maker's stock after acquiring an additional 6,900 shares during the period. Merit Financial Group LLC's holdings in Abbott Laboratories were worth $8,328,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of ABT. Nuveen LLC acquired a new position in Abbott Laboratories during the 1st quarter valued at about $1,658,180,000. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. boosted its position 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 buying an additional 3,616,471 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its holdings in Abbott Laboratories by 12.8% during 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. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA raised its position in Abbott Laboratories by 12.8% in the 1st 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 buying an additional 1,639,954 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Jensen Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Abbott Laboratories by 1,221.2% during the 1st quarter. Jensen Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,365,785 shares of the healthcare product maker's stock worth $181,171,000 after acquiring an additional 1,262,407 shares during the last quarter. 75.18% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Abbott Laboratories Trading Up 1.1%

Shares of Abbott Laboratories stock opened at $134.49 on Monday. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $131.94 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $131.39. The firm has a market cap of $234.07 billion, a PE ratio of 16.85, a PEG ratio of 2.55 and a beta of 0.69. Abbott Laboratories has a 1 year low of $110.86 and a 1 year high of $141.23. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25, a current ratio of 1.82 and a quick ratio of 1.30.

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

Abbott Laboratories Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 17th. Investors of record on Wednesday, October 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.59 per share. This represents a $2.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, October 15th. Abbott Laboratories's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 29.57%.

Insider Transactions at Abbott Laboratories

In other Abbott Laboratories news, CFO Philip P. Boudreau sold 5,550 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred 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 sale, 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 filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 0.46% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have issued reports on ABT. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Abbott Laboratories in a research report on Saturday, September 27th. Mizuho increased their price target on Abbott Laboratories from $130.00 to $140.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 16th. Jefferies Financial Group raised Abbott Laboratories from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and boosted their price objective for the stock from $143.00 to $145.00 in a research report on Friday, July 18th. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their target price on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $153.00 to $157.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 1st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on Abbott Laboratories from $147.00 to $142.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, July 18th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have assigned a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $145.39.

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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