Anchor Capital Advisors LLC Decreases Holdings in Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT)

Anchor Capital Advisors LLC lessened its stake in shares of Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) by 0.9% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 134,350 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock after selling 1,233 shares during the period. Anchor Capital Advisors LLC’s holdings in Abbott Laboratories were worth $14,788,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of ABT. Rise Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Abbott Laboratories in the fourth quarter valued at about $37,000. Stuart Chaussee & Associates Inc. boosted its position in shares of Abbott Laboratories by 236.0% during the 4th quarter. Stuart Chaussee & Associates Inc. now owns 336 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock worth $37,000 after purchasing an additional 236 shares during the period. Stonehage Fleming Financial Services Holdings Ltd purchased a new position in Abbott Laboratories during the 3rd quarter valued at about $40,000. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC grew its holdings in shares of Abbott Laboratories by 79.4% in the third quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 454 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock valued at $44,000 after purchasing an additional 201 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Legacy Financial Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Abbott Laboratories in the third quarter valued at $46,000. 75.18% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other news, VP John A. Jr. Mccoy sold 472 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $118.50, for a total value of $55,932.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 18,760 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,223,060. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other Abbott Laboratories news, VP John A. Jr. Mccoy sold 472 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $118.50, for a total transaction of $55,932.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 18,760 shares in the company, valued at $2,223,060. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Daniel Gesua Sive Salvadori sold 963 shares of the 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 $114,115.50. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 125,697 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $14,895,094.50. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 13,935 shares of company stock valued at $1,670,048 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.47% of the company’s stock.

Abbott Laboratories Price Performance

ABT stock traded down $0.69 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $106.58. 582,216 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 5,570,537. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $113.50 and its 200-day moving average price is $108.34. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a quick ratio of 1.16 and a current ratio of 1.64. The stock has a market cap of $184.94 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.16, a PEG ratio of 2.59 and a beta of 0.74. Abbott Laboratories has a fifty-two week low of $89.67 and a fifty-two week 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 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.96 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $9.96 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $9.88 billion. Abbott Laboratories had a net margin of 13.96% and a return on equity of 20.32%. The firm’s revenue was up 2.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.03 EPS. Research analysts predict that Abbott Laboratories will post 4.62 earnings per share for the current 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 paid a dividend of $0.55 per share. This represents a $2.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.06%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 12th. Abbott Laboratories’s payout ratio is 68.54%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on ABT shares. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their price objective on Abbott Laboratories from $128.00 to $125.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 18th. Raymond James reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $124.00 price objective on shares of Abbott Laboratories in a research report on Wednesday, April 24th. Citigroup lifted their price objective on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $126.00 to $128.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 3rd. Barclays cut their price target on Abbott Laboratories from $141.00 to $140.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 22nd. Finally, Evercore ISI increased their price objective on Abbott Laboratories from $120.00 to $125.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, April 4th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $121.50.

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.