Insider Selling: Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) CEO Sells $16,492,852.39 in Stock

Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) CEO Robert B. Ford sold 141,679 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $116.41, for a total transaction of $16,492,852.39. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 220,059 shares in the company, valued at $25,617,068.19. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink.

Abbott Laboratories Stock Down 0.4 %

NYSE:ABT opened at $116.40 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a current ratio of 1.68 and a quick ratio of 1.18. The firm has a market cap of $202.49 billion, a PE ratio of 36.26, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.90 and a beta of 0.72. The company has a 50-day moving average of $109.24 and a 200 day moving average of $108.57. Abbott Laboratories has a 1-year low of $89.67 and a 1-year high of $121.64.

Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 18th. The healthcare product maker reported $1.14 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.10 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $10.38 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $10.37 billion. Abbott Laboratories had a net margin of 13.65% and a return on equity of 20.18%. The company’s revenue was up 4.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.08 EPS. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Abbott Laboratories will post 4.66 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ABT has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Royal Bank of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and set a $125.00 price objective on shares of Abbott Laboratories in a research report on Tuesday, June 4th. Citigroup raised their price target on Abbott Laboratories from $119.00 to $127.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 22nd. Edward Jones downgraded shares of Abbott Laboratories from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 30th. The Goldman Sachs Group began coverage on shares of Abbott Laboratories in a research note on Thursday, May 30th. They set a “buy” rating and a $121.00 price target for the company. Finally, Evercore ISI reduced their price objective on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $125.00 to $120.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, July 2nd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $121.80.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in ABT. Unique Wealth Strategies LLC bought a new position in Abbott Laboratories in the second quarter worth about $28,000. Transcendent Capital Group LLC purchased a new stake in Abbott Laboratories during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Richardson Financial Services Inc. acquired a new stake in Abbott Laboratories in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Abbott Laboratories in the first quarter worth $30,000. Finally, Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. purchased a new stake in shares of Abbott Laboratories during the 2nd quarter valued at $32,000. 75.18% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Abbott Laboratories

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.