Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. Makes New Investment in Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT)

Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. acquired a new stake in Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 998,953 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock, valued at approximately $103,801,000. Abbott Laboratories comprises approximately 1.1% of Johnson Investment Counsel Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 18th largest position. Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. owned approximately 0.06% of Abbott Laboratories at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Encompass More Asset Management grew its position in Abbott Laboratories by 3.3% in the second quarter. Encompass More Asset Management now owns 3,002 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock worth $312,000 after acquiring an additional 96 shares during the period. Wynn Capital LLC grew its position in Abbott Laboratories by 2.9% in the first quarter. Wynn Capital LLC now owns 3,427 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock worth $390,000 after acquiring an additional 98 shares during the period. Hummer Financial Advisory Services Inc grew its position in Abbott Laboratories by 1.2% in the first quarter. Hummer Financial Advisory Services Inc now owns 8,290 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock worth $942,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares during the period. NORTHSTAR ASSET MANAGEMENT Co LLC grew its position in Abbott Laboratories by 1.9% in the first quarter. NORTHSTAR ASSET MANAGEMENT Co LLC now owns 5,396 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock worth $613,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares during the period. Finally, Addison Capital Co grew its position in Abbott Laboratories by 5.4% in the first quarter. Addison Capital Co now owns 1,950 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock worth $222,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.18% of the company’s stock.

Abbott Laboratories Stock Down 0.5 %

Shares of NYSE ABT opened at $116.55 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $202.75 billion, a P/E ratio of 36.31, a PEG ratio of 2.83 and a beta of 0.72. The company has a current ratio of 1.68, a quick ratio of 1.18 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33. Abbott Laboratories has a 12-month low of $89.67 and a 12-month high of $121.64. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $108.70 and its 200-day simple moving average is $108.69.

Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 18th. The healthcare product maker reported $1.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.10 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $10.38 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $10.37 billion. Abbott Laboratories had a return on equity of 20.18% and a net margin of 13.65%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.08 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts predict that Abbott Laboratories will post 4.66 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Abbott Laboratories Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, July 15th were paid a $0.55 dividend. This represents a $2.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.89%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, July 15th. Abbott Laboratories’s dividend payout ratio is presently 68.54%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $125.00 price objective on shares of Abbott Laboratories in a research report on Tuesday, June 4th. Edward Jones lowered Abbott Laboratories from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 30th. Citigroup upped their price target on Abbott Laboratories from $119.00 to $127.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 22nd. Evercore ISI decreased their price target on Abbott Laboratories from $125.00 to $120.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, July 2nd. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group initiated coverage on Abbott Laboratories in a research note on Thursday, May 30th. They set a “buy” rating and a $121.00 price target on the stock. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $121.80.

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.