Sound View Wealth Advisors Group LLC Sells 3,401 Shares of Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT)

Key Points

• Sound View Wealth Advisors Group LLC has reduced its holdings in Abbott Laboratories by 12.0% during the first quarter, owning 24,888 shares valued at $3,301,000 after selling 3,401 shares.
• Analyst ratings show a bullish sentiment for Abbott Laboratories, with Piper Sandler setting a new price target of $145.00 and the overall consensus rating at "Moderate Buy".
• Abbott Laboratories recently declared a quarterly dividend of $0.59 per share, which will be paid to shareholders on August 15th, representing an annualized yield of 1.83%.

Sound View Wealth Advisors Group LLC lessened its stake in shares of Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT - Free Report) by 12.0% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 24,888 shares of the healthcare product maker's stock after selling 3,401 shares during the period. Sound View Wealth Advisors Group LLC's holdings in Abbott Laboratories were worth $3,301,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Hughes Financial Services LLC purchased a new position in shares of Abbott Laboratories in the 1st quarter worth $27,000. Abound Financial LLC purchased a new position in shares of Abbott Laboratories in the 1st quarter worth $28,000. Redwood Park Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Abbott Laboratories in the 4th quarter worth $25,000. JCIC Asset Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Abbott Laboratories in the 1st quarter worth $32,000. Finally, Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Abbott Laboratories in the 1st quarter worth $34,000. Institutional investors own 75.18% of the company's stock.

Abbott Laboratories Price Performance

NYSE:ABT traded up $1.13 on Friday, reaching $127.32. 5,452,663 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 7,710,759. The company has a quick ratio of 1.27, a current ratio of 1.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $131.78 and a 200-day simple moving average of $130.36. The firm has a market cap of $221.52 billion, a PE ratio of 25.98, a P/E/G ratio of 2.41 and a beta of 0.70. Abbott Laboratories has a 12 month low of $107.11 and a 12 month high of $141.23.

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

Abbott Laboratories Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, July 15th will be issued a $0.59 dividend. This represents a $2.36 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, July 15th. Abbott Laboratories's payout ratio is 29.57%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on ABT. Mizuho raised their price target on Abbott Laboratories from $130.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 16th. Barclays lifted their target price on Abbott Laboratories from $158.00 to $159.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 17th. Leerink Partnrs upgraded Abbott Laboratories to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, June 16th. Piper Sandler reiterated 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, Leerink Partners assumed coverage on Abbott Laboratories in a research report on Monday, June 16th. They set a "market perform" rating and a $143.00 target price on the stock. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Abbott Laboratories presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $144.47.

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.