Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) Stock Position Increased by Rodgers Brothers Inc.

Rodgers Brothers Inc. lifted its position in Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) by 0.2% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 144,738 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock after purchasing an additional 340 shares during the quarter. Abbott Laboratories comprises 2.1% of Rodgers Brothers Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 9th largest position. Rodgers Brothers Inc.’s holdings in Abbott Laboratories were worth $16,371,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Welch Group LLC lifted its stake in Abbott Laboratories by 5.3% during the 4th quarter. Welch Group LLC now owns 68,653 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock valued at $7,744,000 after acquiring an additional 3,479 shares during the period. Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich lifted its position in Abbott Laboratories by 5.5% during the fourth quarter. Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich now owns 1,095,443 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock valued at $133,691,000 after purchasing an additional 57,499 shares during the period. Bath Savings Trust Co boosted its holdings in Abbott Laboratories by 3.7% in the fourth quarter. Bath Savings Trust Co now owns 166,132 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock valued at $18,791,000 after purchasing an additional 5,881 shares during the last quarter. Bank Pictet & Cie Europe AG grew its position in Abbott Laboratories by 1.9% during the 4th quarter. Bank Pictet & Cie Europe AG now owns 152,719 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock worth $17,274,000 after purchasing an additional 2,774 shares during the period. Finally, Pensionfund Sabic purchased a new position in shares of Abbott Laboratories during the 4th quarter valued at about $2,828,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.18% of the company’s stock.

Abbott Laboratories Stock Down 0.4 %

Shares of NYSE ABT opened at $130.81 on Monday. The company has a current ratio of 1.60, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32. The company has a 50-day moving average of $130.05 and a 200 day moving average of $120.39. Abbott Laboratories has a 12-month low of $99.71 and a 12-month high of $141.23. The stock has a market cap of $226.87 billion, a PE ratio of 17.10, a P/E/G ratio of 2.52 and a beta of 0.70.

Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 22nd. The healthcare product maker reported $1.34 EPS for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $1.34. The firm had revenue of $10.97 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $11.03 billion. Abbott Laboratories had a return on equity of 20.74% and a net margin of 31.95%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.19 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Abbott Laboratories will post 5.14 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Abbott Laboratories Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, April 15th will be given a dividend of $0.59 per share. This represents a $2.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.80%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 15th. Abbott Laboratories’s payout ratio is 30.85%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts recently commented on ABT shares. UBS Group raised their target price on Abbott Laboratories from $146.00 to $148.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Barclays reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $158.00 target price (up from $149.00) on shares of Abbott Laboratories in a research note on Monday, January 27th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price target on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $138.00 to $154.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 4th. Argus upgraded shares of Abbott Laboratories to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. Finally, Bank of America lifted their price target on Abbott Laboratories from $133.00 to $150.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, March 10th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Abbott Laboratories presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $137.94.

Insider Activity at Abbott Laboratories

In other news, EVP Daniel Gesua Sive Salvadori sold 23,771 shares of Abbott Laboratories stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $128.50, for a total value of $3,054,573.50. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 125,697 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $16,152,064.50. The trade was a 15.90 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Eric Shroff sold 562 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $138.17, for a total value of $77,651.54. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 31,970 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,417,294.90. This trade represents a 1.73 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 116,449 shares of company stock worth $15,463,316. Company insiders own 0.46% of the company’s stock.

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.