Norden Group LLC Reduces Stock Position in Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT)

Key Points

• Norden Group LLC reduced its stake in Abbott Laboratories by 5.1%, selling 2,041 shares and holding 38,074 shares valued at approximately $5,051,000.
• Several large investors, including Hughes Financial Services and Abound Financial LLC, have recently acquired new positions in Abbott Laboratories, indicating strong institutional interest in the stock.
• Abbott Laboratories announced a quarterly dividend of $0.59 per share, with an ex-dividend date set for July 15th, reflecting a 1.87% annual yield.

Norden Group LLC cut its stake in Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT - Free Report) by 5.1% in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 38,074 shares of the healthcare product maker's stock after selling 2,041 shares during the period. Norden Group LLC's holdings in Abbott Laboratories were worth $5,051,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other large investors have also made changes to their positions in ABT. Hughes Financial Services LLC acquired a new position in shares of Abbott Laboratories in the 1st quarter valued at $27,000. Abound Financial LLC acquired a new position in shares of Abbott Laboratories in the 1st quarter valued at $28,000. Redwood Park Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Abbott Laboratories in the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. JCIC Asset Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Abbott Laboratories in the 1st quarter valued at $32,000. Finally, Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Abbott Laboratories in the 1st quarter valued at $34,000. 75.18% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

ABT has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Piper Sandler reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and issued a $145.00 price target (up previously from $133.00) on shares of Abbott Laboratories in a research note on Thursday, April 17th. 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. Barclays raised their price target on Abbott Laboratories from $158.00 to $159.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 17th. Evercore ISI raised their price target on Abbott Laboratories from $140.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 8th. Finally, William Blair upgraded Abbott Laboratories to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 17th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $144.47.

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 stock was sold at an average price of $129.66, for a total transaction of $337,116.00. Following the sale, the director owned 34,058 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,415,960.28. The trade was a 7.09% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. 0.46% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Abbott Laboratories Stock Up 0.7%

Shares of NYSE ABT opened at $126.53 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $220.15 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.86, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.40 and a beta of 0.73. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26, a current ratio of 1.78 and a quick ratio of 1.27. The business has a 50-day moving average of $132.39 and a two-hundred day moving average of $130.10. Abbott Laboratories has a 1 year low of $99.92 and a 1 year high of $141.23.

Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results 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 return on equity of 18.83% and a net margin of 32.43%. Abbott Laboratories's revenue for the quarter was up 7.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.14 EPS. On average, analysts forecast that Abbott Laboratories will post 5.14 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Abbott Laboratories Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, July 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.59 per share. This represents a $2.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.87%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, July 15th. Abbott Laboratories's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 29.57%.

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.

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