Stock Yards Bank & Trust Co. Lowers Stake in Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT)

Stock Yards Bank & Trust Co. cut its stake in shares of Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT - Free Report) by 1.6% during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 313,157 shares of the healthcare product maker's stock after selling 5,247 shares during the quarter. Abbott Laboratories comprises approximately 1.5% of Stock Yards Bank & Trust Co.'s investment portfolio, making the stock its 21st biggest holding. Stock Yards Bank & Trust Co.'s holdings in Abbott Laboratories were worth $41,540,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Redwood Park Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Abbott Laboratories in the fourth quarter valued at $25,000. Noble Wealth Management PBC purchased a new stake in Abbott Laboratories in the fourth quarter valued at $26,000. NewSquare Capital LLC raised its position in shares of Abbott Laboratories by 78.4% in the fourth quarter. NewSquare Capital LLC now owns 239 shares of the healthcare product maker's stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 105 shares during the period. WealthTrak Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Abbott Laboratories in the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. Finally, Rialto Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Abbott Laboratories in the fourth quarter worth about $29,000. 75.18% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Sally E. Blount sold 2,600 shares of Abbott Laboratories stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $129.66, for a total transaction of $337,116.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 34,058 shares in the company, valued at $4,415,960.28. This trade represents a 7.09% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 0.46% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Abbott Laboratories Stock Down 0.8%

Abbott Laboratories stock traded down $1.04 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $135.41. 3,927,244 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 6,098,055. The company has a market cap of $235.59 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.70, 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 has a quick ratio of 1.14, a current ratio of 1.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32. The company has a fifty day moving average of $131.50 and a 200-day moving average of $126.37.

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

Abbott Laboratories Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed 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 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.74%. Abbott Laboratories's payout ratio is 30.61%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

ABT has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price objective on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $140.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 17th. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective 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 increased their price objective on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $138.00 to $154.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, March 4th. Citigroup increased their price target on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $135.00 to $160.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 4th. Finally, Bank of America increased their price target on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $133.00 to $150.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, March 10th. Four 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, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $142.59.

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.