Foster Group Inc. Has $706,000 Stock Holdings in Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT)

Foster Group Inc. lowered its position in Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) by 3.5% in the 2nd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 6,792 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock after selling 245 shares during the quarter. Foster Group Inc.’s holdings in Abbott Laboratories were worth $706,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Unique Wealth Strategies LLC acquired a new position in shares of Abbott Laboratories during the second quarter worth $28,000. Signature Resources Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in Abbott Laboratories during the 4th quarter worth about $29,000. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Abbott Laboratories in the 1st quarter valued at about $30,000. Richardson Financial Services Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Abbott Laboratories in the fourth quarter valued at about $29,000. Finally, Transcendent Capital Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Abbott Laboratories in the fourth quarter worth approximately $29,000. Institutional investors own 75.18% of the company’s stock.

Abbott Laboratories Stock Up 0.5 %

ABT stock traded up $0.51 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $113.27. 4,320,139 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 5,906,677. The company has a quick ratio of 1.11, a current ratio of 1.68 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $106.97 and its 200-day moving average price is $108.76. Abbott Laboratories has a 52 week low of $89.67 and a 52 week high of $121.64. The company has a market cap of $197.05 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.29, a P/E/G ratio of 2.74 and a beta of 0.72.

Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, July 18th. The healthcare product maker reported $1.14 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.10 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $10.38 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $10.37 billion. Abbott Laboratories had a net margin of 13.65% and a return on equity of 20.18%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.08 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Abbott Laboratories will post 4.66 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Abbott Laboratories Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 15th. Investors of record on Monday, July 15th were given a dividend of $0.55 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, July 15th. This represents a $2.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.94%. Abbott Laboratories’s payout ratio is 68.54%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Citigroup raised their price target on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $119.00 to $127.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, August 22nd. Edward Jones downgraded shares of Abbott Laboratories from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 30th. Evercore ISI cut their price target on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $125.00 to $120.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, July 2nd. The Goldman Sachs Group started coverage on Abbott Laboratories in a research note on Thursday, May 30th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $121.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Barclays raised their target price on Abbott Laboratories from $140.00 to $143.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, July 29th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $121.80.

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.