Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. Sells 31,548 Shares of Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT)

Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. lessened its holdings in Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) by 10.1% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 280,718 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock after selling 31,548 shares during the period. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Abbott Laboratories were worth $37,237,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Redwood Park Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Abbott Laboratories during the 4th quarter worth $25,000. Noble Wealth Management PBC purchased a new stake in shares of Abbott Laboratories in the 4th quarter worth $26,000. NewSquare Capital LLC raised its holdings in Abbott Laboratories by 78.4% in the 4th quarter. NewSquare Capital LLC now owns 239 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 105 shares during the period. WealthTrak Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in Abbott Laboratories during the fourth quarter valued at $28,000. Finally, Rialto Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Abbott Laboratories during the fourth quarter valued at about $29,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.18% of the company’s stock.

Abbott Laboratories Price Performance

NYSE:ABT opened at $132.88 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $231.20 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.24, a P/E/G ratio of 2.53 and a beta of 0.73. The business’s 50-day moving average is $132.19 and its 200 day moving average is $127.03. The company has a current ratio of 1.78, a quick ratio of 1.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26. Abbott Laboratories has a 12 month low of $99.71 and a 12 month high of $141.23.

Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 16th. The healthcare product maker reported $1.09 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.07 by $0.02. Abbott Laboratories had a return on equity of 19.01% and a net margin of 31.89%. The business had revenue of $10.36 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $10.38 billion. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Abbott Laboratories will post 5.14 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Abbott Laboratories Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, July 15th will be issued a $0.59 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, July 15th. This represents a $2.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.78%. Abbott Laboratories’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 30.61%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective 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. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price target on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $135.00 to $145.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, April 17th. Citigroup increased their price objective on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $135.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 4th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $136.00 to $147.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 17th. Finally, Bank of America increased their price target on Abbott Laboratories from $133.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, March 10th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $142.61.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Sally E. Blount sold 2,600 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $129.66, for a total transaction of $337,116.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 34,058 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,415,960.28. The trade was a 7.09% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.46% of the company’s stock.

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.