Sowell Financial Services LLC Sells 8,301 Shares of Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT)

Sowell Financial Services LLC lowered its position in shares of Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT - Free Report) by 25.9% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 23,782 shares of the healthcare product maker's stock after selling 8,301 shares during the period. Sowell Financial Services LLC's holdings in Abbott Laboratories were worth $3,155,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Redwood Park Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Abbott Laboratories in the fourth quarter valued at about $25,000. Noble Wealth Management PBC bought a new stake in Abbott Laboratories in the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. NewSquare Capital LLC grew its position in shares of Abbott Laboratories by 78.4% during the 4th quarter. NewSquare Capital LLC now owns 239 shares of the healthcare product maker's stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 105 shares in the last quarter. WealthTrak Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Abbott Laboratories during the fourth quarter worth approximately $28,000. Finally, Rialto Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Abbott Laboratories in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. 75.18% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Leerink Partners assumed coverage on Abbott Laboratories in a research report on Monday. They set a "market perform" rating and a $143.00 target price for the company. Barclays upped their price objective on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $158.00 to $159.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 17th. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $117.00 to $127.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Thursday, April 17th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price target on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $138.00 to $154.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, March 4th. Finally, Piper Sandler reissued an "overweight" rating and issued a $145.00 price objective (up from $133.00) on shares of Abbott Laboratories in a research note on Thursday, April 17th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Abbott Laboratories has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $142.61.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Sally E. Blount sold 2,600 shares of the company's 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 now owns 34,058 shares in the company, valued at $4,415,960.28. This represents a 7.09% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.46% of the company's stock.

Abbott Laboratories Stock Performance

Shares of Abbott Laboratories stock opened at $133.99 on Tuesday. The stock has a market cap of $233.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.51, a P/E/G ratio of 2.52 and a beta of 0.73. Abbott Laboratories has a twelve month low of $99.71 and a twelve month high of $141.23. The company's fifty day moving average is $131.70 and its 200 day moving average is $126.58. The company has a quick ratio of 1.14, a current ratio of 1.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32.

Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 16th. The healthcare product maker reported $1.09 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.07 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $10.36 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $10.38 billion. Abbott Laboratories had a return on equity of 20.74% and a net margin of 31.95%. Sell-side analysts forecast that Abbott Laboratories will post 5.14 EPS for the current year.

Abbott Laboratories Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, July 15th will be given a dividend of $0.59 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, July 15th. This represents a $2.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.76%. Abbott Laboratories's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 30.61%.

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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