Savant Capital LLC Boosts Holdings in Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT)

Savant Capital LLC raised its stake in shares of Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) by 3.7% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 110,910 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock after purchasing an additional 3,989 shares during the period. Savant Capital LLC’s holdings in Abbott Laboratories were worth $12,208,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in ABT. Rise Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Abbott Laboratories during the fourth quarter valued at $37,000. Stuart Chaussee & Associates Inc. lifted its holdings in Abbott Laboratories by 236.0% during the fourth quarter. Stuart Chaussee & Associates Inc. now owns 336 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock valued at $37,000 after purchasing an additional 236 shares in the last quarter. Stonehage Fleming Financial Services Holdings Ltd purchased a new position in Abbott Laboratories during the third quarter valued at $40,000. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC boosted its position in Abbott Laboratories by 79.4% during the third quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 454 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock worth $44,000 after acquiring an additional 201 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Legacy Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in Abbott Laboratories during the third quarter worth about $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 business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $118.50, for a total value of $55,932.00. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 18,760 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,223,060. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In related news, VP John A. Jr. Mccoy sold 472 shares of the company’s 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 $55,932.00. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 18,760 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,223,060. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Daniel Gesua Sive Salvadori sold 963 shares of the company’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 transaction of $114,115.50. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 125,697 shares in the company, valued at $14,895,094.50. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 13,935 shares of company stock valued at $1,670,048. Company insiders own 0.47% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Citigroup boosted their price target 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. Evercore ISI boosted their price target on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $120.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 4th. Barclays lowered their price target on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $141.00 to $140.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 22nd. Raymond James restated a “buy” rating and set a $124.00 price target on shares of Abbott Laboratories in a research report on Wednesday, April 24th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reduced their target price on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $128.00 to $125.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 18th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $121.50.

Abbott Laboratories Price Performance

Shares of ABT stock opened at $106.77 on Wednesday. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $113.29 and its two-hundred day moving average is $108.44. The company has a market capitalization of $185.27 billion, a PE ratio of 33.00, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.58 and a beta of 0.74. Abbott Laboratories has a 12 month low of $89.67 and a 12 month high of $121.64. 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 released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 17th. The healthcare product maker reported $0.98 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.96 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $9.96 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.88 billion. Abbott Laboratories had a net margin of 13.96% and a return on equity of 20.32%. The business’s revenue was up 2.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.03 EPS. Analysts predict that Abbott Laboratories will post 4.62 earnings per share for the current year.

Abbott Laboratories Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, April 15th will be paid a $0.55 dividend. This represents a $2.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.06%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 12th. Abbott Laboratories’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 68.54%.

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.