First Bancorp Inc ME Decreases Stake in Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT)

First Bancorp Inc ME cut its holdings in shares of Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) by 20.3% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 3,747 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock after selling 952 shares during the period. First Bancorp Inc ME’s holdings in Abbott Laboratories were worth $426,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Dark Forest Capital Management LP bought a new stake in shares of Abbott Laboratories during the third quarter valued at about $310,000. Clearbridge Investments LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Abbott Laboratories by 0.4% in the third quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC now owns 80,955 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock valued at $7,840,000 after purchasing an additional 348 shares in the last quarter. Operose Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Abbott Laboratories in the 3rd quarter worth about $87,000. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Abbott Laboratories by 28.3% in the 3rd quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC now owns 102,882 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock valued at $9,964,000 after purchasing an additional 22,674 shares during the period. Finally, Mendel Money Management boosted its holdings in shares of Abbott Laboratories by 10.9% during the third quarter. Mendel Money Management now owns 2,535 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock worth $246,000 after purchasing an additional 250 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.18% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have issued reports on ABT. Citigroup reduced their target price on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $128.00 to $119.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, May 22nd. Barclays reduced their target price on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $141.00 to $140.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 22nd. Evercore ISI upped their price target on Abbott Laboratories from $120.00 to $125.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 4th. The Goldman Sachs Group began coverage on shares of Abbott Laboratories in a report on Thursday, May 30th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $121.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $125.00 target price on shares of Abbott Laboratories in a research report on Tuesday, June 4th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $120.64.

Abbott Laboratories Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:ABT traded down $0.61 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $104.88. 3,344,775 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 5,682,427. The company has a market capitalization of $182.45 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.78, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.54 and a beta of 0.74. Abbott Laboratories has a 1-year low of $89.67 and a 1-year high of $121.64. The business’s 50 day moving average is $104.89 and its 200-day moving average is $110.17. The company has a quick ratio of 1.11, a current ratio of 1.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32.

Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, April 17th. The healthcare product maker reported $0.98 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.96 by $0.02. Abbott Laboratories had a return on equity of 20.18% and a net margin of 13.96%. The company had revenue of $9.96 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $9.88 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.03 EPS. Abbott Laboratories’s quarterly revenue was up 2.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts forecast that Abbott Laboratories will post 4.62 earnings per share for the current year.

Abbott Laboratories Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 15th. Investors of record on Monday, July 15th will be given a $0.55 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, July 15th. This represents a $2.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.10%. Abbott Laboratories’s payout ratio is 68.54%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Jr. Robert E. Funck sold 10,097 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $104.57, for a total transaction of $1,055,843.29. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 211,341 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $22,099,928.37. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In other news, EVP Lisa D. Earnhardt sold 22,852 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $106.25, for a total transaction of $2,428,025.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 61,462 shares in the company, valued at $6,530,337.50. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Jr. Robert E. Funck sold 10,097 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, May 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $104.57, for a total transaction of $1,055,843.29. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 211,341 shares in the company, valued at $22,099,928.37. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

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.