Congress Wealth Management LLC DE Lowers Stock Holdings in Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT)

Congress Wealth Management LLC DE lessened its holdings in shares of Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) by 5.9% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 49,836 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock after selling 3,109 shares during the quarter. Congress Wealth Management LLC DE’s holdings in Abbott Laboratories were worth $5,637,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in Abbott Laboratories in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $635,056,000. State Street Corp boosted its holdings in Abbott Laboratories by 3.1% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 76,720,429 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock valued at $8,746,896,000 after purchasing an additional 2,323,807 shares during the period. Jennison Associates LLC grew its stake in Abbott Laboratories by 22,372.2% during the 4th quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 1,201,364 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock worth $135,886,000 after purchasing an additional 1,196,018 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its holdings in Abbott Laboratories by 13.7% during the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 9,764,061 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock worth $1,144,818,000 after purchasing an additional 1,180,040 shares during the period. Finally, Proficio Capital Partners LLC raised its position in Abbott Laboratories by 22,466.1% in the 4th quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 1,006,223 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock valued at $113,814,000 after purchasing an additional 1,001,764 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.18% of the company’s stock.

Abbott Laboratories Trading Down 1.4 %

NYSE ABT opened at $125.46 on Wednesday. Abbott Laboratories has a one year low of $99.71 and a one year high of $141.23. The firm has a market cap of $217.59 billion, a PE ratio of 16.40, a P/E/G ratio of 2.52 and a beta of 0.70. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $129.04 and its two-hundred day moving average is $120.12. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a current ratio of 1.60.

Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 22nd. The healthcare product maker reported $1.34 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.34. The company had revenue of $10.97 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $11.03 billion. Abbott Laboratories had a return on equity of 20.74% and a net margin of 31.95%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.19 EPS. Analysts expect that Abbott Laboratories will post 5.14 earnings per share for the current year.

Abbott Laboratories Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, April 15th will be paid a $0.59 dividend. This represents a $2.36 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.88%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 15th. Abbott Laboratories’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 30.85%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms recently weighed in on ABT. UBS Group upped their target price on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $146.00 to $148.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. StockNews.com lowered shares of Abbott Laboratories from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Bank of America boosted their target price on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $133.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, March 10th. Citigroup lifted their price target on Abbott Laboratories from $135.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 4th. Finally, Evercore ISI increased their price objective on Abbott Laboratories to $136.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, January 2nd. Four equities 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.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $137.94.

Insider Transactions at Abbott Laboratories

In other news, EVP Lisa D. Earnhardt sold 91,167 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $133.82, for a total transaction of $12,199,967.94. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 71,928 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,625,404.96. This represents a 55.90 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Daniel Gesua Sive Salvadori sold 23,771 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $128.50, for a total transaction of $3,054,573.50. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 125,697 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $16,152,064.50. This trade represents a 15.90 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 116,449 shares of company stock worth $15,463,316 over the last ninety days. 1.10% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Abbott Laboratories 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.