Russell Investments Group Ltd. Trims Stake in Abbott Laboratories $ABT

Key Points

• Russell Investments Group Ltd. cut its stake in Abbott Laboratories by 5.8% in the fourth quarter, selling 70,186 shares and leaving it with 1,148,075 shares worth about $143.9 million.
• Abbott reported better-than-expected quarterly results, with EPS of $1.15 vs. the $1.14 estimate and revenue of $11.16 billion vs. $10.99 billion expected. The company also reaffirmed full-year and second-quarter EPS guidance.
• Abbott announced a quarterly dividend of $0.63 per share, payable August 17, implying an annualized dividend of $2.52 and a yield of 2.8%. Analysts currently rate the stock a moderate buy, though several have recently lowered their price targets.

Russell Investments Group Ltd. lowered its stake in shares of Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT - Free Report) by 5.8% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 1,148,075 shares of the healthcare product maker's stock after selling 70,186 shares during the quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. owned about 0.07% of Abbott Laboratories worth $143,941,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in ABT. Brighton Jones LLC boosted its position in shares of Abbott Laboratories by 10.1% during the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 51,719 shares of the healthcare product maker's stock valued at $5,850,000 after purchasing an additional 4,755 shares in the last quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC raised its holdings in Abbott Laboratories by 3.5% in the second quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 4,768 shares of the healthcare product maker's stock worth $648,000 after purchasing an additional 162 shares in the last quarter. United Bank lifted its position in Abbott Laboratories by 7.4% during the second quarter. United Bank now owns 29,004 shares of the healthcare product maker's stock valued at $3,945,000 after buying an additional 2,001 shares during the period. Main Street Financial Solutions LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Abbott Laboratories by 13.6% during the 2nd quarter. Main Street Financial Solutions LLC now owns 11,894 shares of the healthcare product maker's stock valued at $1,618,000 after buying an additional 1,428 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Canada Pension Plan Investment Board grew its position in shares of Abbott Laboratories by 25.6% in the 2nd quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 1,435,683 shares of the healthcare product maker's stock worth $195,267,000 after buying an additional 292,547 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 75.18% of the company's stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Abbott Laboratories news, CFO Philip P. Boudreau acquired 2,200 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 23rd. The shares were bought at an average cost of $91.50 per share, with a total value of $201,300.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 2,200 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $201,300. This represents a ∞ increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Daniel J. Starks acquired 10,000 shares of Abbott Laboratories stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 27th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $92.65 per share, with a total value of $926,500.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director directly owned 6,751,103 shares in the company, valued at $625,489,692.95. This represents a 0.15% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. Corporate insiders own 0.46% of the company's stock.

Abbott Laboratories Trading Up 2.2%

Shares of NYSE ABT opened at $90.64 on Wednesday. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $90.93 and its 200-day moving average price is $107.30. Abbott Laboratories has a 52-week low of $81.97 and a 52-week high of $139.06. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56, a quick ratio of 1.01 and a current ratio of 1.39. The company has a market cap of $157.87 billion, a PE ratio of 25.39, a P/E/G ratio of 1.53 and a beta of 0.63.

Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 16th. The healthcare product maker reported $1.15 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.14 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $11.16 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $10.99 billion. Abbott Laboratories had a net margin of 13.90% and a return on equity of 17.62%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 7.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.09 earnings per share. Abbott Laboratories has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.380-5.580 EPS and its Q2 2026 guidance at 1.250-1.310 EPS. On average, equities research analysts expect that Abbott Laboratories will post 5.48 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Abbott Laboratories Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 17th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, July 15th will be paid a $0.63 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, July 15th. This represents a $2.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.8%. Abbott Laboratories's payout ratio is currently 70.59%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on ABT shares. Bank of America lowered their price target on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $120.00 to $102.00 in a research report on Friday, June 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $123.00 to $110.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, April 17th. Raymond James Financial lowered their target price on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $130.00 to $115.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Friday, April 17th. Mizuho reduced their price objective on Abbott Laboratories from $125.00 to $115.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, April 17th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their target price on Abbott Laboratories from $121.00 to $113.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, May 27th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nineteen have given a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $118.30.

Abbott Laboratories Profile

Abbott Laboratories is a global healthcare company headquartered in Abbott Park, Illinois, that develops, manufactures and markets a broad portfolio of medical products and services. Founded in 1888, Abbott operates through multiple business areas that focus on diagnostics, medical devices, nutritionals and established pharmaceuticals. The company supplies hospitals, clinics, laboratories, retailers and direct-to-consumer channels with products intended to diagnose, treat and manage a wide range of health conditions.

In diagnostics, Abbott provides laboratory and point-of-care testing platforms and assays used to detect infectious diseases, chronic conditions and biomarkers; its Alinity family of instruments and rapid-test solutions are examples of this capability.

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