Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) Shares Sold by Highland Capital Management LLC

Highland Capital Management LLC decreased its holdings in shares of Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) by 1.7% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 8,490 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock after selling 150 shares during the quarter. Highland Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Abbott Laboratories were worth $934,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in ABT. Halpern Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in Abbott Laboratories in the third quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Altshuler Shaham Ltd acquired a new position in Abbott Laboratories in the fourth quarter valued at $28,000. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Abbott Laboratories during the second quarter worth about $28,000. CGC Financial Services LLC purchased a new stake in Abbott Laboratories during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Finally, FWL Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in Abbott Laboratories during the 4th quarter worth approximately $33,000. 75.18% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Citigroup increased their price target on Abbott Laboratories from $123.00 to $126.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, January 25th. Raymond James raised their price objective on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $124.00 to $127.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 25th. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $128.00 target price on shares of Abbott Laboratories in a research report on Wednesday, February 14th. Barclays raised their price target on Abbott Laboratories from $133.00 to $141.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, January 26th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on Abbott Laboratories from $116.00 to $121.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 13th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $120.00.

Insider Activity

In related news, VP John A. Jr. Mccoy sold 472 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $118.50, for a total value of $55,932.00. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 18,760 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,223,060. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In other Abbott Laboratories news, VP John A. Jr. Mccoy sold 472 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $118.50, for a total transaction of $55,932.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 18,760 shares in the company, valued at $2,223,060. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Daniel Gesua Sive Salvadori sold 963 shares of Abbott Laboratories stock in a transaction on Friday, March 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $118.50, for a total transaction of $114,115.50. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 125,697 shares in the company, valued at approximately $14,895,094.50. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 56,435 shares of company stock valued at $6,451,298 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

Abbott Laboratories Stock Up 1.8 %

Shares of NYSE:ABT opened at $113.47 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $196.89 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.81, a P/E/G ratio of 2.65 and a beta of 0.75. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $115.14 and its 200-day simple moving average is $106.37. Abbott Laboratories has a 52-week low of $89.67 and a 52-week high of $121.64. The company has a quick ratio of 1.16, a current ratio of 1.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35.

Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 24th. The healthcare product maker reported $1.19 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $1.19. The company had revenue of $10.24 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $10.19 billion. Abbott Laboratories had a net margin of 14.27% and a return on equity of 20.65%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.03 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Abbott Laboratories will post 4.62 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Abbott Laboratories Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, April 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.55 per share. This represents a $2.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.94%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 12th. Abbott Laboratories’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 67.48%.

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.