Tufton Capital Management Trims Holdings in Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT)

Tufton Capital Management reduced its stake in shares of Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) by 1.2% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 69,866 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock after selling 865 shares during the quarter. Abbott Laboratories makes up approximately 1.6% of Tufton Capital Management’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 26th largest position. Tufton Capital Management’s holdings in Abbott Laboratories were worth $7,690,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Altshuler Shaham Ltd purchased a new stake in Abbott Laboratories in the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Abbott Laboratories in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $28,000. FWL Investment Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Abbott Laboratories during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $33,000. True Wealth Design LLC bought a new position in Abbott Laboratories in the fourth quarter worth approximately $33,000. Finally, Quarry LP lifted its holdings in Abbott Laboratories by 132.9% during the second quarter. Quarry LP now owns 333 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock worth $36,000 after buying an additional 190 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.18% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

ABT has been the subject of several recent research reports. TheStreet raised Abbott Laboratories from a “c+” rating to a “b-” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 21st. Raymond James raised their price objective on Abbott Laboratories from $124.00 to $127.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 25th. Evercore ISI increased 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. Barclays boosted their price target on Abbott Laboratories from $133.00 to $141.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 26th. Finally, Citigroup increased their price objective on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $126.00 to $128.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 3rd. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $121.31.

Insider Transactions at Abbott Laboratories

In other Abbott Laboratories news, EVP Andrea F. Wainer sold 12,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $120.00, for a total value of $1,500,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 78,704 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,444,480. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In other news, EVP Andrea F. Wainer sold 42,500 shares of Abbott Laboratories stock in a transaction on Monday, January 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $112.50, for a total transaction of $4,781,250.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 65,027 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,315,537.50. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, 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 value of $1,500,000.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 78,704 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,444,480. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 56,435 shares of company stock valued at $6,451,298. 1.10% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Abbott Laboratories Price Performance

Shares of ABT stock traded down $0.53 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $105.37. The company had a trading volume of 2,041,936 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,626,565. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $114.42 and a 200-day moving average of $107.59. The company has a market capitalization of $182.84 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.25, a PEG ratio of 2.63 and a beta of 0.74. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a quick ratio of 1.16 and a current ratio of 1.64. Abbott Laboratories has a 12-month low of $89.67 and a 12-month high of $121.64.

Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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. The firm had revenue of $9.96 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.88 billion. Abbott Laboratories had a return on equity of 20.65% and a net margin of 14.27%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 2.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.03 EPS. On average, equities analysts anticipate 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 Wednesday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, April 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.55 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 12th. This represents a $2.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.09%. Abbott Laboratories’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 67.48%.

Abbott Laboratories 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.