Edge Financial Advisors LLC Invests $278,000 in Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT)

Edge Financial Advisors LLC bought a new position in Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm bought 2,442 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock, valued at approximately $278,000.

Other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Unique Wealth Strategies LLC bought a new stake in Abbott Laboratories in the second quarter worth $28,000. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Abbott Laboratories during the 1st quarter valued at about $30,000. Future Financial Wealth Managment LLC bought a new position in Abbott Laboratories during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $31,000. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. purchased a new position in Abbott Laboratories in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $32,000. Finally, Ridgewood Investments LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Abbott Laboratories during the second quarter valued at approximately $37,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.18% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms recently commented on ABT. Barclays upped their price target on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $140.00 to $143.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, July 29th. Evercore ISI increased their target price on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $120.00 to $124.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 1st. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on Abbott Laboratories from $107.00 to $117.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, October 17th. Oppenheimer began coverage on Abbott Laboratories in a report on Tuesday, October 8th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $130.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Raymond James reissued a “buy” rating and set a $129.00 target price (up from $122.00) on shares of Abbott Laboratories in a research note on Monday, October 14th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Abbott Laboratories currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $129.67.

Abbott Laboratories Stock Down 0.0 %

Shares of Abbott Laboratories stock traded down $0.03 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $113.37. The company had a trading volume of 403,361 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,685,763. The company has a 50 day moving average of $114.73 and a 200 day moving average of $108.70. The stock has a market capitalization of $197.22 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.33, a P/E/G ratio of 2.74 and a beta of 0.72. Abbott Laboratories has a 52-week low of $92.43 and a 52-week high of $121.64. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a quick ratio of 1.18 and a current ratio of 1.68.

Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 16th. The healthcare product maker reported $1.21 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.20 by $0.01. Abbott Laboratories had a return on equity of 20.18% and a net margin of 13.65%. The firm had revenue of $10.64 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $10.55 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.14 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 4.9% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts predict that Abbott Laboratories will post 4.66 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Abbott Laboratories Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, October 15th will be issued a $0.55 dividend. This represents a $2.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.94%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, October 15th. Abbott Laboratories’s payout ratio is 68.54%.

Insider Transactions at Abbott Laboratories

In other news, CEO Robert B. Ford sold 141,679 shares of Abbott Laboratories stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $116.41, for a total value of $16,492,852.39. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 220,059 shares in the company, valued at $25,617,068.19. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Company insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

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.