Tributary Capital Management LLC Decreases Stock Holdings in Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT)

Tributary Capital Management LLC reduced its stake in shares of Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) by 28.3% during the first quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 4,740 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock after selling 1,872 shares during the quarter. Tributary Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Abbott Laboratories were worth $629,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Hughes Financial Services LLC purchased a new position in Abbott Laboratories during the 1st quarter valued at $27,000. Abound Financial LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Abbott Laboratories in the 1st quarter worth about $28,000. Redwood Park Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Abbott Laboratories in the 4th quarter worth about $25,000. JCIC Asset Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Abbott Laboratories in the 1st quarter worth about $32,000. Finally, WealthTrak Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Abbott Laboratories in the 4th quarter worth about $28,000. 75.18% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on ABT shares. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $136.00 to $147.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 17th. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their target price on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $145.00 to $147.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Leerink Partners started coverage on shares of Abbott Laboratories in a research report on Monday, June 16th. They issued a “market perform” rating and a $143.00 target price on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price target on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $135.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 17th. Finally, Leerink Partnrs upgraded shares of Abbott Laboratories to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, June 16th. Six investment 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 data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $144.33.

Insider Transactions at Abbott Laboratories

In related news, Director Sally E. Blount sold 2,600 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $129.66, for a total value of $337,116.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 34,058 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,415,960.28. This represents a 7.09% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.46% of the company’s stock.

Abbott Laboratories Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:ABT opened at $131.79 on Thursday. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $133.43 and its 200-day moving average price is $129.32. Abbott Laboratories has a twelve month low of $99.71 and a twelve month high of $141.23. The company has a quick ratio of 1.27, a current ratio of 1.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26. The stock has a market capitalization of $229.30 billion, a PE ratio of 17.09, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.50 and a beta of 0.73.

Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 17th. The healthcare product maker reported $1.26 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.25 by $0.01. Abbott Laboratories had a net margin of 31.89% and a return on equity of 19.01%. Equities research analysts expect that Abbott Laboratories will post 5.14 EPS for the current year.

Abbott Laboratories Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, July 15th will be paid a $0.59 dividend. This represents a $2.36 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.79%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, July 15th. Abbott Laboratories’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 30.61%.

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.