St. Clair Advisors LLC Takes Position in Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT)

St. Clair Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund bought 15,160 shares of the healthcare product maker's stock, valued at approximately $1,715,000.

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of ABT. Regent Peak Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Abbott Laboratories by 2.0% during the fourth quarter. Regent Peak Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 4,873 shares of the healthcare product maker's stock worth $551,000 after purchasing an additional 97 shares in the last quarter. Tallon Kerry Patrick purchased a new stake in shares of Abbott Laboratories in the 4th quarter valued at $200,000. Capital & Planning LLC boosted its holdings in Abbott Laboratories by 1.2% during the 4th quarter. Capital & Planning LLC now owns 8,673 shares of the healthcare product maker's stock valued at $981,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares during the period. Merit Financial Group LLC grew its position in Abbott Laboratories by 17.0% in the 4th quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC now owns 50,340 shares of the healthcare product maker's stock valued at $5,694,000 after acquiring an additional 7,316 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sax Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Abbott Laboratories during the fourth quarter worth about $640,000. 75.18% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP Andrea F. Wainer sold 949 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $138.17, for a total value of $131,123.33. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 74,381 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,277,222.77. This trade represents a 1.26% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Eric Shroff sold 562 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $138.17, for a total transaction of $77,651.54. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 31,970 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,417,294.90. This trade represents a 1.73% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 95,278 shares of company stock worth $12,745,859 in the last 90 days. Company insiders own 0.46% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Abbott Laboratories from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Royal Bank of Canada upped their target price on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $140.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 17th. Barclays upped their target price on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $158.00 to $159.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 17th. 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 note on Thursday, April 17th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on Abbott Laboratories from $117.00 to $127.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 17th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $142.59.

Abbott Laboratories Stock Down 1.2%

Shares of Abbott Laboratories stock traded down $1.59 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $131.46. The company had a trading volume of 6,272,085 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,134,777. The company's 50-day moving average is $129.69 and its two-hundred day moving average is $124.43. Abbott Laboratories has a twelve month low of $99.71 and a twelve month high of $141.23. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a current ratio of 1.60 and a quick ratio of 1.14. The company has a market cap of $228.72 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.18, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.52 and a beta of 0.74.

Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 16th. The healthcare product maker reported $1.09 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.07 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $10.36 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $10.38 billion. Abbott Laboratories had a net margin of 31.95% and a return on equity of 20.74%. Analysts anticipate 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 was paid on Thursday, May 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, April 15th were paid a dividend of $0.59 per share. This represents a $2.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.80%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, April 15th. Abbott Laboratories's dividend payout ratio 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.