Russell Investments Group Ltd. Lowers Stock Holdings in Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT)

Key Points

• Russell Investments Group Ltd. has decreased its stake in Abbott Laboratories by 0.8%, owning approximately 1.1 million shares worth around $146.96 million.
• Other institutional investors, including Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd. and Rathbones Group PLC, increased their holdings in Abbott during the same period, reflecting a trend among hedge funds.
• Abbott Laboratories recently announced a quarterly dividend of $0.59 per share, representing a 1.8% dividend yield with a payout ratio of 29.57%.

Russell Investments Group Ltd. trimmed its position in shares of Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT - Free Report) by 0.8% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 1,108,777 shares of the healthcare product maker's stock after selling 9,013 shares during the quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. owned 0.06% of Abbott Laboratories worth $146,962,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of ABT. Cim LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Abbott Laboratories by 0.4% in the 4th quarter. Cim LLC now owns 16,967 shares of the healthcare product maker's stock worth $1,919,000 after purchasing an additional 73 shares during the period. Capital Square LLC boosted its holdings in Abbott Laboratories by 2.7% during the 4th quarter. Capital Square LLC now owns 2,941 shares of the healthcare product maker's stock valued at $368,000 after acquiring an additional 77 shares during the period. Consilium Wealth Advisory LLC boosted its holdings in Abbott Laboratories by 2.1% during the 1st quarter. Consilium Wealth Advisory LLC now owns 3,822 shares of the healthcare product maker's stock valued at $507,000 after acquiring an additional 78 shares during the period. Mayflower Financial Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Abbott Laboratories by 0.5% during the 1st quarter. Mayflower Financial Advisors LLC now owns 17,327 shares of the healthcare product maker's stock valued at $2,298,000 after acquiring an additional 78 shares during the period. Finally, Opes Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in Abbott Laboratories by 2.9% during the 1st quarter. Opes Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,854 shares of the healthcare product maker's stock valued at $379,000 after acquiring an additional 80 shares during the period. 75.18% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. Barclays boosted their price objective on Abbott Laboratories from $158.00 to $159.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, April 17th. Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their price objective on Abbott Laboratories from $145.00 to $147.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 15th. Raymond James Financial dropped their price objective on Abbott Laboratories from $142.00 to $141.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Friday, July 18th. Piper Sandler reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and set a $145.00 target price (up from $133.00) on shares of Abbott Laboratories in a research report on Thursday, April 17th. Finally, William Blair raised Abbott Laboratories to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 17th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, Abbott Laboratories currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $144.47.

Insider Activity at Abbott Laboratories

In related news, CFO Philip P. Boudreau sold 5,550 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated 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 owned 51,003 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $6,862,453.65. This represents a 9.81% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.46% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Abbott Laboratories Stock Performance

Abbott Laboratories stock traded down $1.63 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $129.39. 6,723,731 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 8,025,790. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25, a current ratio of 1.82 and a quick ratio of 1.30. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $131.52 and its 200-day moving average price is $131.15. The stock has a market capitalization of $225.20 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.21, a P/E/G ratio of 2.48 and a beta of 0.70. Abbott Laboratories has a 1 year low of $107.71 and a 1 year high of $141.23.

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

Abbott Laboratories Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, July 15th will be paid a $0.59 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, July 15th. This represents a $2.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.8%. Abbott Laboratories's dividend payout ratio is presently 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.