Concord Asset Management LLC VA Increases Holdings in Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT)

Concord Asset Management LLC VA lifted its position in Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) by 14.2% in the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 15,188 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,890 shares during the period. Concord Asset Management LLC VA’s holdings in Abbott Laboratories were worth $1,732,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Peterson Financial Group Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Abbott Laboratories in the third quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Tower Bridge Advisors raised its stake in Abbott Laboratories by 3.7% in the third quarter. Tower Bridge Advisors now owns 45,017 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock worth $5,132,000 after buying an additional 1,597 shares in the last quarter. Atlanta Consulting Group Advisors LLC bought a new position in Abbott Laboratories in the third quarter worth approximately $464,000. Accredited Investors Inc. raised its stake in Abbott Laboratories by 8.3% in the third quarter. Accredited Investors Inc. now owns 13,788 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock worth $1,572,000 after buying an additional 1,062 shares in the last quarter. Finally, River Street Advisors LLC raised its stake in Abbott Laboratories by 16.4% in the third quarter. River Street Advisors LLC now owns 7,282 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock worth $830,000 after buying an additional 1,025 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.18% of the company’s stock.

Abbott Laboratories Trading Up 0.8 %

Shares of NYSE:ABT opened at $115.90 on Friday. Abbott Laboratories has a 52-week low of $97.64 and a 52-week high of $121.64. The stock has a market cap of $201.02 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.23, a PEG ratio of 2.72 and a beta of 0.72. The company has a quick ratio of 1.14, a current ratio of 1.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $115.53 and a 200-day moving average price of $109.52.

Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 16th. The healthcare product maker reported $1.21 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.20 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $10.64 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $10.55 billion. Abbott Laboratories had a return on equity of 20.18% and a net margin of 13.99%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.14 earnings per share. Equities analysts predict that Abbott Laboratories will post 4.67 EPS for the current year.

Abbott Laboratories Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, October 15th were given a dividend of $0.55 per share. This represents a $2.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.90%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, October 15th. Abbott Laboratories’s dividend payout ratio is currently 66.87%.

Insider Activity at Abbott Laboratories

In related news, CEO Robert B. Ford sold 141,679 shares of Abbott Laboratories stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $116.41, for a total transaction of $16,492,852.39. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 220,059 shares in the company, valued at approximately $25,617,068.19. This trade represents a 39.17 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 1.10% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts recently commented on the stock. Citigroup boosted their price objective on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $119.00 to $127.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 22nd. Mizuho boosted their price objective on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $115.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price objective on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $120.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. Raymond James reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $129.00 price target (up from $122.00) on shares of Abbott Laboratories in a research report on Monday, October 14th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein upped their price target on Abbott Laboratories from $133.00 to $138.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Abbott Laboratories has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $130.07.

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.