KBC Group NV Reduces Position in Abbott Laboratories $ABT

KBC Group NV trimmed its holdings in Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) by 57.5% in the 1st quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 986,110 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock after selling 1,334,196 shares during the period. KBC Group NV’s holdings in Abbott Laboratories were worth $101,244,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the business. J. Stern & Co. LLP boosted its holdings in shares of Abbott Laboratories by 12,439.6% during the 4th quarter. J. Stern & Co. LLP now owns 39,319,009 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock valued at $4,926,279,000 after acquiring an additional 39,005,451 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Abbott Laboratories during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $2,938,892,000. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. lifted its position in Abbott Laboratories by 303.0% during the first quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 4,429,571 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock valued at $454,784,000 after purchasing an additional 3,330,368 shares during the period. Ninety One UK Ltd bought a new position in Abbott Laboratories during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $336,815,000. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Abbott Laboratories by 1.4% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 175,556,716 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock worth $21,995,501,000 after purchasing an additional 2,402,408 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.18% of the company’s stock.

Abbott Laboratories Trading Up 0.0%

Shares of ABT stock opened at $100.71 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56, a current ratio of 1.39 and a quick ratio of 1.01. The company has a market cap of $175.41 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.59, a PEG ratio of 1.73 and a beta of 0.61. Abbott Laboratories has a 1 year low of $81.97 and a 1 year high of $137.49. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $89.89 and a 200-day moving average price of $102.01.

Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, July 16th. The healthcare product maker reported $1.31 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.28 by $0.03. Abbott Laboratories had a return on equity of 17.65% and a net margin of 11.65%.The company had revenue of $12.51 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $12.52 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.26 EPS. Abbott Laboratories’s revenue for the quarter was up 13.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Abbott Laboratories has set its Q3 2026 guidance at 1.380-1.46 EPS and its FY 2026 guidance at 5.450-5.60 EPS. As a group, equities analysts predict that Abbott Laboratories will post 5.48 earnings per share for the current year.

Abbott Laboratories Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 17th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, July 15th will be given a dividend of $0.63 per share. This represents a $2.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, July 15th. Abbott Laboratories’s payout ratio is presently 81.55%.

Insider Transactions at Abbott Laboratories

In other news, CFO Philip P. Boudreau bought 2,200 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 23rd. The shares were bought at an average price of $91.50 per share, for a total transaction of $201,300.00. Following the purchase, the chief financial officer owned 2,200 shares in the company, valued at approximately $201,300. The trade was a ∞ increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Daniel J. Starks purchased 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, April 27th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $92.65 per share, for a total transaction of $926,500.00. Following the acquisition, the director directly owned 6,751,103 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $625,489,692.95. This represents a 0.15% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. 0.46% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Trending Headlines about Abbott Laboratories

Here are the key news stories impacting Abbott Laboratories this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Abbott beat Q2 earnings expectations and raised 2026 adjusted EPS guidance to $5.45-$5.60, signaling better profit momentum for the rest of the year. Abbott Reports Second-Quarter 2026 Results and Raises Full-Year EPS Guidance
• Positive Sentiment: Management pointed to stronger second-half demand across multiple businesses, including nutrition, medical devices, diagnostics, and diabetes care, which supports a faster growth profile. ABT Q2 Earnings Call Flags Stronger Second-Half Setup
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts turned more constructive after the results, with JPMorgan, Citi, Piper Sandler, Wells Fargo, TD Cowen, BTIG, and RBC all lifting targets or reaffirming bullish views. These Analysts Increase Their Forecasts On Abbott Following Better-Than-Expected Q2 Results

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Citigroup boosted their target price on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $108.00 to $112.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday. Benchmark dropped their price target on Abbott Laboratories from $145.00 to $120.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, April 17th. Barclays cut their price objective on Abbott Laboratories from $144.00 to $143.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 20th. Oppenheimer lowered their target price on Abbott Laboratories from $132.00 to $115.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, April 17th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $130.00 target price on shares of Abbott Laboratories in a research report on Friday. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nineteen have given a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $118.61.

Abbott Laboratories Company Profile

Abbott Laboratories is a global healthcare company headquartered in Abbott Park, Illinois, that develops, manufactures and markets a broad portfolio of medical products and services. Founded in 1888, Abbott operates through multiple business areas that focus on diagnostics, medical devices, nutritionals and established pharmaceuticals. The company supplies hospitals, clinics, laboratories, retailers and direct-to-consumer channels with products intended to diagnose, treat and manage a wide range of health conditions.

In diagnostics, Abbott provides laboratory and point-of-care testing platforms and assays used to detect infectious diseases, chronic conditions and biomarkers; its Alinity family of instruments and rapid-test solutions are examples of this capability.