Keb Asset Management LLC Buys 312 Shares of Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT)

Keb Asset Management LLC raised its stake in Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) by 8.7% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 3,896 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock after buying an additional 312 shares during the period. Keb Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Abbott Laboratories were worth $443,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Abbott Laboratories during the 4th quarter worth about $2,115,836,000. Capital Research Global Investors grew its stake in Abbott Laboratories by 9.5% during the fourth quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 86,588,614 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock worth $9,530,825,000 after purchasing an additional 7,527,778 shares during the period. Boston Partners increased its holdings in Abbott Laboratories by 12,577.8% in the fourth quarter. Boston Partners now owns 3,772,670 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock worth $415,948,000 after purchasing an additional 3,742,912 shares in the last quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company boosted its holdings in shares of Abbott Laboratories by 41.8% during the 4th quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 5,009,838 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock worth $551,434,000 after buying an additional 1,477,671 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Capital International Investors grew its position in shares of Abbott Laboratories by 2.3% during the 4th quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 64,294,784 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock worth $7,077,148,000 after buying an additional 1,457,847 shares during the period. 75.18% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Abbott Laboratories Stock Down 0.6 %

Abbott Laboratories stock traded down $0.58 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $104.24. 5,861,940 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 5,651,715. The company has a quick ratio of 1.11, a current ratio of 1.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32. The stock has a market capitalization of $181.34 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.47, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.48 and a beta of 0.76. Abbott Laboratories has a 52-week low of $89.67 and a 52-week high of $121.64. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $108.29 and its 200-day moving average price is $109.47.

Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, April 17th. The healthcare product maker reported $0.98 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.96 by $0.02. Abbott Laboratories had a return on equity of 20.18% 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 period in the prior year, the company posted $1.03 earnings per share. Abbott Laboratories’s quarterly revenue was up 2.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts expect that Abbott Laboratories will post 4.62 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

ABT has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Barclays cut their target price on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $141.00 to $140.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 22nd. Citigroup reduced their target price on Abbott Laboratories from $128.00 to $119.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday. Raymond James reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $124.00 price target on shares of Abbott Laboratories in a research note on Wednesday, April 24th. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their price objective on Abbott Laboratories from $128.00 to $125.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 18th. Finally, Evercore ISI increased their target price on Abbott Laboratories from $120.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, April 4th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $120.60.

Insider Activity

In other Abbott Laboratories news, EVP Andrea F. Wainer sold 12,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction 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 completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 78,704 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,444,480. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other news, VP John A. Jr. Mccoy sold 472 shares of Abbott Laboratories stock in a transaction on Friday, March 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $118.50, for a total transaction of $55,932.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 18,760 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,223,060. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Andrea F. Wainer sold 12,500 shares of the stock in a transaction 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 completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 78,704 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,444,480. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 46,884 shares of company stock worth $5,153,916 over the last ninety days. 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.