KLCM Advisors Inc. Has $1.10 Million Holdings in Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT)

KLCM Advisors Inc. lessened its position in shares of Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) by 4.5% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 9,995 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock after selling 476 shares during the quarter. KLCM Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Abbott Laboratories were worth $1,100,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. TRUE Private Wealth Advisors increased its position in Abbott Laboratories by 16.0% during the 4th quarter. TRUE Private Wealth Advisors now owns 6,010 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock valued at $662,000 after purchasing an additional 830 shares during the period. Scissortail Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Abbott Laboratories during the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,778,000. Tyche Wealth Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Abbott Laboratories during the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,328,000. Allen Capital Group LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Abbott Laboratories by 16.5% during the 4th quarter. Allen Capital Group LLC now owns 3,969 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock worth $437,000 after buying an additional 562 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Eagle Bluffs Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Abbott Laboratories by 0.9% during the 4th quarter. Eagle Bluffs Wealth Management LLC now owns 13,216 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock worth $1,455,000 after buying an additional 124 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.18% of the company’s stock.

Abbott Laboratories Stock Performance

Shares of Abbott Laboratories stock traded up $0.32 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $109.21. 7,283,867 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 5,461,397. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $114.57 and a 200-day simple moving average of $107.60. Abbott Laboratories has a 12-month low of $89.67 and a 12-month high of $121.64. The stock has a market capitalization of $189.50 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.50, a PEG ratio of 2.62 and a beta of 0.74. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a current ratio of 1.64 and a quick ratio of 1.16.

Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 24th. The healthcare product maker reported $1.19 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $1.19. Abbott Laboratories had a return on equity of 20.65% and a net margin of 14.27%. The company had revenue of $10.24 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $10.19 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.03 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.5% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts anticipate that Abbott Laboratories will post 4.62 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Abbott Laboratories Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 15th. Investors of record on Monday, April 15th will be issued a $0.55 dividend. This represents a $2.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.01%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 12th. Abbott Laboratories’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 67.48%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have issued reports on ABT. Royal Bank of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and set a $128.00 price target on shares of Abbott Laboratories in a report on Wednesday, February 14th. Citigroup increased their price target on Abbott Laboratories from $126.00 to $128.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 3rd. Evercore ISI increased their target price on Abbott Laboratories from $120.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, April 4th. TheStreet upgraded Abbott Laboratories from a “c+” rating to a “b-” rating in a report on Thursday, December 21st. Finally, Raymond James increased their target price on Abbott Laboratories from $124.00 to $127.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, January 25th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $122.14.

Insider Buying and Selling at Abbott Laboratories

In other news, EVP Andrea F. Wainer sold 12,500 shares of Abbott Laboratories stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $120.00, for a total transaction of $1,500,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 78,704 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,444,480. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other news, EVP Andrea F. Wainer sold 12,500 shares of Abbott Laboratories stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $120.00, for a total transaction of $1,500,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 78,704 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,444,480. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, VP John A. Jr. Mccoy sold 472 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $118.50, for a total value of $55,932.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 18,760 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,223,060. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 56,435 shares of company stock valued at $6,451,298 in the last quarter. 0.47% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.