Nisa Investment Advisors LLC Sells 19,550 Shares of Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT)

Nisa Investment Advisors LLC lessened its holdings in shares of Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT - Free Report) by 3.6% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 518,441 shares of the healthcare product maker's stock after selling 19,550 shares during the period. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC's holdings in Abbott Laboratories were worth $68,771,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in ABT. Redwood Park Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Abbott Laboratories in the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. WealthTrak Capital Management LLC bought a new position in Abbott Laboratories in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Abound Financial LLC acquired a new stake in Abbott Laboratories during the 1st quarter worth $28,000. Wormser Freres Gestion acquired a new stake in Abbott Laboratories during the 4th quarter worth $32,000. Finally, JCIC Asset Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Abbott Laboratories in the 1st quarter worth $32,000. 75.18% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms recently commented on ABT. Piper Sandler reiterated an "overweight" rating and issued a $145.00 price objective (up previously from $133.00) on shares of Abbott Laboratories in a report on Thursday, April 17th. Leerink Partners started coverage on shares of Abbott Laboratories in a research report on Monday, June 16th. They issued a "market perform" rating and a $143.00 price target on the stock. Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $158.00 to $159.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 17th. Leerink Partnrs upgraded shares of Abbott Laboratories to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, June 16th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price target on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $135.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 17th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $143.11.

Abbott Laboratories Stock Down 1.2%

ABT traded down $1.66 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $131.95. 4,661,224 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 6,149,109. The stock has a market cap of $229.56 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.11, a PEG 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 stock's 50-day moving average is $133.54 and its two-hundred day moving average is $128.86. The company has a quick ratio of 1.27, a current ratio of 1.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26.

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

Abbott Laboratories Dividend Announcement

The firm 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. This represents a $2.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.79%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, July 15th. Abbott Laboratories's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 30.61%.

Insider Transactions at Abbott Laboratories

In other news, Director Sally E. Blount sold 2,600 shares of Abbott Laboratories stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $129.66, for a total value of $337,116.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 34,058 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,415,960.28. This trade represents a 7.09% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Company insiders own 0.46% of the company's stock.

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.