Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) Issues Quarterly Earnings Results

Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday. The healthcare product maker reported $0.98 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.96 by $0.02, RTT News reports. Abbott Laboratories had a return on equity of 20.32% and a net margin of 13.96%. The company had revenue of $9.96 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.88 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.03 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 2.2% on a year-over-year basis.

Abbott Laboratories Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE ABT opened at $105.27 on Friday. Abbott Laboratories has a one year low of $89.67 and a one year high of $121.64. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $114.28 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $107.57. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a current ratio of 1.64 and a quick ratio of 1.16. The company has a market capitalization of $182.66 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.79, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.55 and a beta of 0.74.

Abbott Laboratories Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 15th. Investors of record on Monday, April 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.55 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 12th. This represents a $2.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.09%. Abbott Laboratories’s dividend payout ratio is 68.54%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts recently commented on the stock. Citigroup raised their price objective on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $126.00 to $128.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 3rd. Barclays lifted their target price on Abbott Laboratories from $133.00 to $141.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, January 26th. Evercore ISI upped their target price on Abbott Laboratories from $120.00 to $125.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, April 4th. Raymond James boosted their price objective on Abbott Laboratories from $124.00 to $127.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, January 25th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada decreased their target price on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $128.00 to $125.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Abbott Laboratories currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $121.31.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Andrea F. Wainer sold 12,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $120.00, for a total value of $1,500,000.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 78,704 shares in the company, valued at $9,444,480. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. In related news, EVP Andrea F. Wainer sold 42,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, January 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $112.50, for a total value of $4,781,250.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 65,027 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,315,537.50. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Andrea F. Wainer sold 12,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $120.00, for a total value of $1,500,000.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 78,704 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,444,480. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 56,435 shares of company stock worth $6,451,298 in the last three months. 1.10% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Milestone Investment Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Abbott Laboratories during the first quarter valued at about $117,000. Worth Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Abbott Laboratories in the first quarter worth $108,000. Hobbs Group Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Abbott Laboratories during the 4th quarter valued at $99,000. Tyler Stone Wealth Management bought a new position in shares of Abbott Laboratories during the 2nd quarter worth about $61,000. Finally, Studio Investment Management LLC raised its position in shares of Abbott Laboratories by 125.0% during the fourth quarter. Studio Investment Management LLC now owns 450 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock valued at $49,000 after buying an additional 250 shares during the last quarter. 75.18% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.