Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) Shares Down 0.8% – Time to Sell?

Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) fell 0.8% during trading on Thursday . The stock traded as low as $111.79 and last traded at $112.72. 537,151 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 91% from the average session volume of 5,749,559 shares. The stock had previously closed at $113.64.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms recently weighed in on ABT. Citigroup increased their price objective on shares of 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 cut Abbott Laboratories from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 30th. Piper Sandler Companies began coverage on Abbott Laboratories in a research report on Thursday, September 19th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $131.00 price target on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group reissued a “hold” rating and set a $120.00 target price on shares of Abbott Laboratories in a research report on Thursday, September 26th. Finally, Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $140.00 to $143.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, July 29th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $124.33.

Abbott Laboratories Stock Up 0.4 %

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a quick ratio of 1.18 and a current ratio of 1.68. The company has a market capitalization of $195.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.09, a PEG ratio of 2.86 and a beta of 0.72. The business’s 50 day moving average is $112.37 and its 200 day moving average is $108.22.

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

Abbott Laboratories Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, October 15th will be given a $0.55 dividend. This represents a $2.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.95%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, October 15th. Abbott Laboratories’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 68.54%.

Insider Transactions at Abbott Laboratories

In other news, CEO Robert B. Ford sold 141,679 shares of Abbott Laboratories stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $116.41, for a total value of $16,492,852.39. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 220,059 shares in the company, valued at $25,617,068.19. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Corporate insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Abbott Laboratories

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in ABT. Boltwood Capital Management lifted its holdings in Abbott Laboratories by 0.4% in the 3rd quarter. Boltwood Capital Management now owns 21,821 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock valued at $2,488,000 after purchasing an additional 89 shares in the last quarter. Central Pacific Bank Trust Division lifted its stake in shares of Abbott Laboratories by 2.3% in the third quarter. Central Pacific Bank Trust Division now owns 4,045 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock worth $461,000 after buying an additional 91 shares in the last quarter. Hanson & Doremus Investment Management boosted its position in Abbott Laboratories by 0.8% during the second quarter. Hanson & Doremus Investment Management now owns 11,165 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock worth $1,160,000 after acquiring an additional 92 shares during the last quarter. Encompass More Asset Management grew its stake in Abbott Laboratories by 3.3% during the 2nd quarter. Encompass More Asset Management now owns 3,002 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock valued at $312,000 after acquiring an additional 96 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wynn Capital LLC raised its holdings in Abbott Laboratories by 2.9% in the 1st quarter. Wynn Capital LLC now owns 3,427 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock valued at $390,000 after acquiring an additional 98 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.18% of the company’s stock.

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.