Smith Thornton Advisors LLC Purchases Shares of 3,886 Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT)

Smith Thornton Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) in the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 3,886 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock, valued at approximately $404,000.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Unique Wealth Strategies LLC purchased a new position in shares of Abbott Laboratories in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $28,000. Transcendent Capital Group LLC acquired a new stake in Abbott Laboratories during the fourth quarter worth about $29,000. Richardson Financial Services Inc. acquired a new position in Abbott Laboratories in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Abbott Laboratories in the 1st quarter worth approximately $30,000. Finally, Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. acquired a new stake in shares of Abbott Laboratories during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $32,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.18% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Abbott Laboratories

In other news, CEO Robert B. Ford sold 141,679 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $116.41, for a total value of $16,492,852.39. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 220,059 shares in the company, valued at approximately $25,617,068.19. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. 1.10% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Abbott Laboratories Stock Performance

NYSE:ABT opened at $112.70 on Friday. 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 $196.06 billion, a PE ratio of 35.11, a P/E/G ratio of 2.86 and a beta of 0.72. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $111.36 and a 200-day simple moving average of $108.42. 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 data on Thursday, July 18th. The healthcare product maker reported $1.14 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.10 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $10.38 billion during 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 business’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.08 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts expect that Abbott Laboratories will post 4.66 EPS for the current year.

Abbott Laboratories Dividend Announcement

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a “hold” rating and issued a $120.00 price objective on shares of Abbott Laboratories in a report on Thursday. The Goldman Sachs Group began coverage on Abbott Laboratories in a report on Thursday, May 30th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $121.00 price objective on the stock. Citigroup increased their target price on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $119.00 to $127.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 22nd. Barclays boosted their price target on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $140.00 to $143.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, July 29th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $125.00 price target on shares of Abbott Laboratories in a research note on Tuesday, June 4th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $124.00.

Abbott Laboratories Company 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.