Vivid Wealth Management LLC Acquires Shares of 19,518 Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT)

Vivid Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm acquired 19,518 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock, valued at approximately $2,589,000. Abbott Laboratories comprises 1.3% of Vivid Wealth Management LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 24th largest position.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in ABT. Redwood Park Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Abbott Laboratories during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Noble Wealth Management PBC bought a new position in shares of Abbott Laboratories during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $26,000. NewSquare Capital LLC grew its position in shares of Abbott Laboratories by 78.4% during the 4th quarter. NewSquare Capital LLC now owns 239 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 105 shares during the period. WealthTrak Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Abbott Laboratories during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Finally, Rialto Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Abbott Laboratories during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.18% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group increased their target price on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $135.00 to $137.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 17th. Barclays raised their price objective on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $158.00 to $159.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, April 17th. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price objective on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $135.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, April 17th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price objective on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $138.00 to $154.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 4th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $136.00 to $147.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, April 17th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $142.61.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Sally E. Blount sold 2,600 shares of Abbott Laboratories stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $129.66, for a total value of $337,116.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 34,058 shares in the company, valued at $4,415,960.28. This trade represents a 7.09% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 0.46% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Abbott Laboratories Stock Performance

NYSE ABT opened at $133.99 on Tuesday. Abbott Laboratories has a 52-week low of $99.71 and a 52-week high of $141.23. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a current ratio of 1.60. The company has a market capitalization of $233.12 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.51, a P/E/G ratio of 2.52 and a beta of 0.73. The company has a fifty day moving average of $131.70 and a 200-day moving average of $126.58.

Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 16th. The healthcare product maker reported $1.09 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.07 by $0.02. Abbott Laboratories had a net margin of 31.95% and a return on equity of 20.74%. The company had revenue of $10.36 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $10.38 billion. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Abbott Laboratories will post 5.14 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Abbott Laboratories Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, July 15th will be given a $0.59 dividend. This represents a $2.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.76%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, July 15th. Abbott Laboratories’s payout ratio is presently 30.61%.

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.