Barclays Initiates Coverage on Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT)

Investment analysts at Barclays began coverage on shares of Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) in a research note issued to investors on Wednesday, MarketBeat Ratings reports. The brokerage set an “overweight” rating and a $120.00 price target on the healthcare product maker’s stock. Barclays‘s target price would suggest a potential upside of 21.88% from the company’s current price.

Several other equities analysts have also weighed in on ABT. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on Abbott Laboratories from $109.00 to $112.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, July 17th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $110.00 to $120.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, July 17th. Bank of America reduced their price target on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $120.00 to $102.00 in a research report on Friday, June 12th. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Abbott Laboratories from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research report on Friday, September 18th. Finally, Rothschild & Co Redburn raised shares of Abbott Laboratories from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their target price for the company from $119.00 to $127.00 in a research note on Friday, October 2nd. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-one have assigned a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Abbott Laboratories currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $118.88.

Abbott Laboratories Stock Down 0.3%

Shares of NYSE ABT opened at $98.46 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $170.37 billion, a PE ratio of 31.86, a P/E/G ratio of 1.83 and a beta of 0.59. The company has a quick ratio of 0.97, a current ratio of 1.38 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $106.37 and a 200-day moving average of $98.34. Abbott Laboratories has a 52-week low of $81.97 and a 52-week high of $135.13.

Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, July 16th. The healthcare product maker reported $1.31 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.28 by $0.03. Abbott Laboratories had a return on equity of 17.69% and a net margin of 11.65%.The firm had revenue of $12.59 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $12.52 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.26 earnings per share. The firm’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. On average, analysts anticipate that Abbott Laboratories will post 5.52 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Copley Financial Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Abbott Laboratories by 2.1% during the 4th quarter. Copley Financial Group Inc. now owns 4,435 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock worth $556,000 after acquiring an additional 93 shares in the last quarter. WealthTrust Axiom LLC lifted its position in shares of Abbott Laboratories by 3.2% in the fourth quarter. WealthTrust Axiom LLC now owns 3,064 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock worth $384,000 after purchasing an additional 94 shares in the last quarter. St. Johns Investment Management Company LLC boosted its holdings in Abbott Laboratories by 1.0% during the second quarter. St. Johns Investment Management Company LLC now owns 9,859 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock worth $895,000 after purchasing an additional 101 shares during the last quarter. Davidson Investment Advisors grew its position in Abbott Laboratories by 3.6% in the second quarter. Davidson Investment Advisors now owns 3,084 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock valued at $280,000 after purchasing an additional 106 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Kinloch Capital LLC increased its stake in Abbott Laboratories by 0.4% in the 4th quarter. Kinloch Capital LLC now owns 29,202 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock valued at $3,659,000 after buying an additional 111 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.18% of the company’s stock.

Key Stories Impacting Abbott Laboratories

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

• Positive Sentiment: Barclays initiated coverage with an Overweight rating and a $120 price target, implying roughly 22% upside from the referenced share price. The bullish initiation adds fresh institutional support and reflects confidence in Abbott’s diversified medical-device and healthcare portfolio. Abbott Laboratories Now Covered by Analysts at Barclays
• Positive Sentiment: Abbott received FDA clearance for updates to its CardioMEMS heart-failure system. The CardioGuide HF App and Dynamic Treatment Plan allow patients to view pulmonary artery pressure data and receive clinician-guided medication adjustments, strengthening Abbott’s connected-care and remote-monitoring strategy. FDA-Approved CardioMEMS App Integration
• Positive Sentiment: The company launched Ensure Max Protein 3-in-1 Muscle Support, combining protein, creatine and HMB. The product expands Abbott’s consumer-health offering and targets growing demand for mainstream muscle and wellness products. Abbott Introduces Ensure Max Protein 3-in-1 Muscle Support
• Positive Sentiment: Abbott also announced an exclusive U.S. partnership connecting its Lingo glucose-monitoring wearable with Berry Street’s live nutrition coaching, potentially increasing adoption of its consumer diabetes and metabolic-health products. Abbott Ties Glucose Tracking to Live Nutrition Coaching
• Neutral Sentiment: Wall Street’s average brokerage recommendation is equivalent to Buy, while Zacks reported elevated investor attention. However, the articles caution that analyst recommendations can be overly optimistic and are not, by themselves, a strong valuation signal. Is It Worth Investing in Abbott Based on Wall Street’s Bullish Views?
• Negative Sentiment: Commentary notes that Abbott is not showing rapid growth and trades at a relatively demanding earnings multiple. Its long record of quarterly dividend payments—411 consecutive quarters—supports the income case, but slower growth may limit near-term upside. Is Abbott Laboratories a Dividend Bargain After Its 2026 Selloff?

About Abbott Laboratories

Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) is a diversified healthcare company that develops, manufactures and sells medical devices, diagnostic products, nutritional products and branded generic pharmaceuticals. Founded in 1888 by Wallace C. Abbott, the company serves healthcare providers, institutions, retailers and consumers worldwide.

Abbott’s medical device portfolio includes cardiovascular products, such as coronary stents, structural heart systems and heart failure devices, as well as diabetes-care technologies, including the FreeStyle Libre continuous glucose monitoring system.