Ramirez Asset Management Inc. Increases Position in Abbott Laboratories $ABT

Ramirez Asset Management Inc. increased its stake in Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) by 102.7% in the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 21,049 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock after purchasing an additional 10,667 shares during the quarter. Ramirez Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Abbott Laboratories were worth $2,863,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Kelly Financial Services LLC purchased a new position in shares of Abbott Laboratories in the 1st quarter valued at about $216,000. Edge Financial Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Abbott Laboratories by 3.3% during the 1st quarter. Edge Financial Advisors LLC now owns 2,530 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock valued at $336,000 after acquiring an additional 81 shares in the last quarter. Avanza Fonder AB increased its holdings in Abbott Laboratories by 0.4% during the 2nd quarter. Avanza Fonder AB now owns 168,401 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock valued at $22,904,000 after acquiring an additional 655 shares in the last quarter. Madrona Financial Services LLC increased its holdings in Abbott Laboratories by 9.7% during the 2nd quarter. Madrona Financial Services LLC now owns 1,726 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock valued at $235,000 after acquiring an additional 152 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Janney Montgomery Scott LLC increased its holdings in Abbott Laboratories by 12.4% during the 2nd quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 669,868 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock valued at $91,109,000 after acquiring an additional 73,780 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.18% of the company’s stock.

Abbott Laboratories Price Performance

Abbott Laboratories stock opened at $133.24 on Friday. Abbott Laboratories has a 12-month low of $110.86 and a 12-month high of $141.23. The stock has a market capitalization of $231.90 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.70, a P/E/G ratio of 2.55 and a beta of 0.69. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $132.44 and its two-hundred day moving average is $131.52. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25, a current ratio of 1.82 and a quick ratio of 1.30.

Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 17th. The healthcare product maker reported $1.26 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $1.26. Abbott Laboratories had a net margin of 32.43% and a return on equity of 18.32%. The company had revenue of $11.14 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $11.01 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.14 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Abbott Laboratories has set its FY 2025 guidance at 5.100-5.200 EPS. Q3 2025 guidance at 1.280-1.320 EPS. Equities analysts predict that Abbott Laboratories will post 5.14 earnings per share for the current year.

Abbott Laboratories Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 17th. Investors of record on Wednesday, October 15th will be given a $0.59 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, October 15th. This represents a $2.36 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.8%. Abbott Laboratories’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 29.57%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CFO Philip P. Boudreau sold 5,550 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $134.55, for a total value of $746,752.50. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 51,003 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,862,453.65. This trade represents a 9.81% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.46% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have weighed in on ABT shares. Leerink Partnrs upgraded shares of Abbott Laboratories to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, June 16th. William Blair upgraded shares of Abbott Laboratories to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, July 17th. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $127.00 to $137.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 15th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $147.00 to $142.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, July 18th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised shares of Abbott Laboratories from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price target for the stock from $143.00 to $145.00 in a research note on Friday, July 18th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have assigned a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $146.24.

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.