Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) Stock Holdings Reduced by Ascension Asset Management LLC

Ascension Asset Management LLC cut its position in shares of Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) by 1.9% in the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 10,413 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock after selling 200 shares during the period. Ascension Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Abbott Laboratories were worth $1,082,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in ABT. Silver Lake Advisory LLC raised its position in Abbott Laboratories by 4.7% during the second quarter. Silver Lake Advisory LLC now owns 57,759 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock valued at $6,002,000 after acquiring an additional 2,593 shares in the last quarter. Magnolia Capital Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Abbott Laboratories during the 2nd quarter valued at $314,000. Copperwynd Financial LLC lifted its stake in shares of Abbott Laboratories by 36.0% in the 2nd quarter. Copperwynd Financial LLC now owns 8,620 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock valued at $913,000 after purchasing an additional 2,282 shares during the last quarter. Annandale Capital LLC boosted its holdings in Abbott Laboratories by 1,125.5% in the second quarter. Annandale Capital LLC now owns 33,124 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock worth $3,442,000 after purchasing an additional 30,421 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Ascent Group LLC raised its holdings in Abbott Laboratories by 13.8% during the second quarter. Ascent Group LLC now owns 21,772 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock valued at $2,262,000 after buying an additional 2,639 shares in the last quarter. 75.18% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling at Abbott Laboratories

In other Abbott Laboratories news, CEO Robert B. Ford sold 141,679 shares of Abbott Laboratories stock in a transaction on 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 transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 220,059 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $25,617,068.19. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

ABT has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Evercore ISI lowered their price objective on Abbott Laboratories from $125.00 to $120.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, July 2nd. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a “hold” rating and set a $120.00 price target on shares of Abbott Laboratories in a report on Thursday. Royal Bank of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $125.00 price objective on shares of Abbott Laboratories in a research note on Tuesday, June 4th. Citigroup lifted their target price on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $119.00 to $127.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, August 22nd. Finally, Barclays upped their price target 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 investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Abbott Laboratories has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $124.00.

Abbott Laboratories Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:ABT opened at $112.43 on Friday. The business’s 50 day moving average is $111.57 and its 200-day moving average is $108.28. The company has a current ratio of 1.68, a quick ratio of 1.18 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33. The firm has a market capitalization of $195.59 billion, a PE ratio of 35.02, a PEG ratio of 2.86 and a beta of 0.72. Abbott Laboratories has a 1-year low of $89.67 and a 1-year high of $121.64.

Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, July 18th. The healthcare product maker reported $1.14 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.10 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $10.38 billion for 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 firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.08 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts predict that Abbott Laboratories will post 4.66 earnings per share for the current year.

Abbott Laboratories Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, October 15th will be given a dividend of $0.55 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, October 15th. This represents a $2.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.96%. Abbott Laboratories’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 68.54%.

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.