Williams Jones Wealth Management LLC. Purchases 3,393 Shares of Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT)

Williams Jones Wealth Management LLC. grew its position in shares of Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT - Free Report) by 1.9% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 177,705 shares of the healthcare product maker's stock after acquiring an additional 3,393 shares during the quarter. Williams Jones Wealth Management LLC.'s holdings in Abbott Laboratories were worth $20,100,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of ABT. Regent Peak Wealth Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Abbott Laboratories by 2.0% in the 4th quarter. Regent Peak Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 4,873 shares of the healthcare product maker's stock worth $551,000 after acquiring an additional 97 shares during the last quarter. Tallon Kerry Patrick bought a new stake in Abbott Laboratories during the 4th quarter worth approximately $200,000. Capital & Planning LLC raised its stake in shares of Abbott Laboratories by 1.2% in the fourth quarter. Capital & Planning LLC now owns 8,673 shares of the healthcare product maker's stock worth $981,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. Cascade Investment Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Abbott Laboratories by 31.5% in the fourth quarter. Cascade Investment Group Inc. now owns 3,345 shares of the healthcare product maker's stock valued at $378,000 after purchasing an additional 802 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Hall Laurie J Trustee boosted its position in shares of Abbott Laboratories by 1.7% during the fourth quarter. Hall Laurie J Trustee now owns 64,543 shares of the healthcare product maker's stock valued at $7,300,000 after buying an additional 1,081 shares during the last quarter. 75.18% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on the company. Citigroup increased their price target on Abbott Laboratories from $135.00 to $160.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 4th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $136.00 to $147.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, April 17th. Argus raised shares of Abbott Laboratories to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. 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 research note on Thursday, April 17th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group boosted their target price on Abbott Laboratories from $135.00 to $137.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 17th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Abbott Laboratories presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $142.59.

Abbott Laboratories Stock Up 0.5%

Shares of NYSE ABT opened at $135.52 on Tuesday. 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 stock has a market capitalization of $235.78 billion, a PE ratio of 17.72, a P/E/G ratio of 2.52 and a beta of 0.74. Abbott Laboratories has a one year low of $99.71 and a one year high of $141.23. The business's fifty day moving average price is $129.46 and its 200-day moving average price is $124.29.

Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 16th. The healthcare product maker reported $1.09 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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 the consensus estimate of $10.38 billion. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Abbott Laboratories will post 5.14 EPS for the current year.

Abbott Laboratories Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, April 15th were given a $0.59 dividend. This represents a $2.36 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.74%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, April 15th. Abbott Laboratories's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 30.61%.

Insider Activity at Abbott Laboratories

In other Abbott Laboratories news, EVP Lisa D. Earnhardt sold 91,167 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $133.82, for a total value of $12,199,967.94. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 71,928 shares in the company, valued at $9,625,404.96. This represents a 55.90% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Sally E. Blount sold 2,600 shares of the firm's 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 completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 34,058 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,415,960.28. The trade was a 7.09% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 95,278 shares of company stock worth $12,745,859. 0.46% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Abbott Laboratories 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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.