Tidal Investments LLC Raises Holdings in Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT)

Tidal Investments LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) by 51.7% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 162,823 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock after acquiring an additional 55,515 shares during the period. Tidal Investments LLC’s holdings in Abbott Laboratories were worth $18,417,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Redwood Park Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Abbott Laboratories during the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. Noble Wealth Management PBC purchased a new stake in shares of Abbott Laboratories during the fourth quarter worth about $26,000. NewSquare Capital LLC boosted its position in Abbott Laboratories by 78.4% in the fourth quarter. NewSquare Capital LLC now owns 239 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 105 shares during the last quarter. WealthTrak Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in Abbott Laboratories in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Finally, Rialto Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Abbott Laboratories in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.18% of the company’s stock.

Abbott Laboratories Stock Up 1.1%

NYSE ABT opened at $134.79 on Monday. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $129.36 and a 200 day moving average price of $124.17. Abbott Laboratories has a one year low of $99.71 and a one year 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 cap of $234.51 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.62, a P/E/G ratio of 2.52 and a beta of 0.74.

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

Abbott Laboratories Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, April 15th were paid a $0.59 dividend. This represents a $2.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.75%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, April 15th. Abbott Laboratories’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 30.61%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on the company. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on Abbott Laboratories from $117.00 to $127.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 17th. Royal Bank of Canada upped their target price on Abbott Laboratories from $140.00 to $145.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 17th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their target price on Abbott Laboratories from $138.00 to $154.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 4th. Raymond James upped their target price on Abbott Laboratories from $132.00 to $142.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 17th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on Abbott Laboratories from $136.00 to $147.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 17th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $142.59.

Insider Transactions at Abbott Laboratories

In other news, EVP Andrea F. Wainer sold 949 shares of Abbott Laboratories stock in a transaction on Monday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $138.17, for a total transaction of $131,123.33. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 74,381 shares in the company, valued at $10,277,222.77. The trade was a 1.26% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Sally E. Blount sold 2,600 shares of Abbott Laboratories stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 30th. The stock was 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 approximately $4,415,960.28. This represents a 7.09% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 95,278 shares of company stock worth $12,745,859 in the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.46% of the company’s stock.

About Abbott Laboratories

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.