Vestcor Inc Grows Stock Holdings in Abbott Laboratories $ABT

Key Points

• Vestcor Inc increased its stake in Abbott Laboratories by 46.6% in the fourth quarter, buying 35,849 additional shares and bringing its total holdings to 112,714 shares worth about $14.1 million.
• Several analysts lowered price targets on ABT, though the stock still carries a consensus rating of Moderate Buy with an average target price of $119.09.
• Abbott reported better-than-expected quarterly results, with earnings per share of $1.15 and revenue of $11.16 billion, while also noting FY 2026 EPS guidance of $5.38 to $5.58.

Vestcor Inc grew its stake in Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT - Free Report) by 46.6% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 112,714 shares of the healthcare product maker's stock after purchasing an additional 35,849 shares during the period. Vestcor Inc's holdings in Abbott Laboratories were worth $14,122,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in ABT. Nia Impact Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Abbott Laboratories by 2.2% in the second quarter. Nia Impact Advisors LLC now owns 3,706 shares of the healthcare product maker's stock valued at $504,000 after purchasing an additional 79 shares during the period. American National Bank of Texas lifted its holdings in Abbott Laboratories by 2.4% during the 4th quarter. American National Bank of Texas now owns 3,408 shares of the healthcare product maker's stock worth $427,000 after buying an additional 79 shares in the last quarter. Connable Office Inc. lifted its holdings in Abbott Laboratories by 0.5% during the 3rd quarter. Connable Office Inc. now owns 15,042 shares of the healthcare product maker's stock worth $2,015,000 after buying an additional 81 shares in the last quarter. Park Place Capital Corp boosted its position in Abbott Laboratories by 11.0% in the 4th quarter. Park Place Capital Corp now owns 815 shares of the healthcare product maker's stock valued at $102,000 after buying an additional 81 shares during the period. Finally, Lantern Wealth Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Abbott Laboratories by 1.7% in the third quarter. Lantern Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 5,028 shares of the healthcare product maker's stock worth $674,000 after acquiring an additional 84 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.18% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Piper Sandler reduced their price objective on Abbott Laboratories from $135.00 to $115.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, April 17th. Argus cut their price target on Abbott Laboratories from $140.00 to $125.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 21st. Mizuho reduced their price target on Abbott Laboratories from $125.00 to $115.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, April 17th. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their price objective on Abbott Laboratories from $145.00 to $135.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, April 17th. Finally, Benchmark cut their target price on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $145.00 to $120.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, April 17th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nineteen have assigned a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Abbott Laboratories has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $119.09.

Abbott Laboratories Trading Up 0.5%

ABT opened at $91.20 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56, a quick ratio of 1.01 and a current ratio of 1.39. Abbott Laboratories has a one year low of $81.97 and a one year high of $139.06. The company has a market cap of $158.85 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.55, a PEG ratio of 1.51 and a beta of 0.63. The business's 50-day simple moving average is $92.80 and its 200-day simple moving average is $109.31.

Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, April 16th. The healthcare product maker reported $1.15 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.14 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $11.16 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $10.99 billion. Abbott Laboratories had a return on equity of 17.62% and a net margin of 13.90%.The firm's revenue was up 7.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business 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. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Abbott Laboratories will post 5.48 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Abbott Laboratories

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

About Abbott Laboratories

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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