New England Research & Management Inc. Reduces Stock Holdings in Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT)

New England Research & Management Inc. reduced its holdings in Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) by 1.7% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 18,260 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock after selling 314 shares during the period. New England Research & Management Inc.’s holdings in Abbott Laboratories were worth $2,075,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the business. Norway Savings Bank boosted its holdings in shares of Abbott Laboratories by 0.9% in the 1st quarter. Norway Savings Bank now owns 31,873 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock valued at $3,623,000 after acquiring an additional 271 shares during the last quarter. Register Financial Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Abbott Laboratories by 6.2% in the 1st quarter. Register Financial Advisors LLC now owns 3,114 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock valued at $354,000 after acquiring an additional 183 shares during the last quarter. Capital Asset Advisory Services LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Abbott Laboratories by 9.7% in the 1st quarter. Capital Asset Advisory Services LLC now owns 24,413 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock valued at $2,715,000 after acquiring an additional 2,167 shares during the last quarter. Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Abbott Laboratories by 30.5% during the first quarter. Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 18,412 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock worth $2,093,000 after buying an additional 4,303 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Tarbox Family Office Inc. boosted its holdings in Abbott Laboratories by 12.8% during the first quarter. Tarbox Family Office Inc. now owns 50,740 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock worth $5,767,000 after buying an additional 5,751 shares in the last quarter. 75.18% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Abbott Laboratories Price Performance

Shares of NYSE ABT opened at $103.94 on Friday. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $104.79 and a 200-day simple moving average of $110.08. The stock has a market capitalization of $180.82 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.38, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.52 and a beta of 0.74. The company has a quick ratio of 1.11, a current ratio of 1.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32. Abbott Laboratories has a 52 week low of $89.67 and a 52 week high of $121.64.

Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, April 17th. The healthcare product maker reported $0.98 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.96 by $0.02. Abbott Laboratories had a net margin of 13.96% and a return on equity of 20.18%. The business had revenue of $9.96 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $9.88 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.03 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 2.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts predict that Abbott Laboratories will post 4.62 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Abbott Laboratories Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 15th. Investors of record on Monday, July 15th will be given a dividend of $0.55 per share. This represents a $2.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.12%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, July 15th. Abbott Laboratories’s payout ratio is currently 68.54%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts recently issued reports on ABT shares. Citigroup lowered their price target on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $128.00 to $119.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, May 22nd. Barclays lowered their price target on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $141.00 to $140.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 22nd. Raymond James reissued a “buy” rating and set a $124.00 price target on shares of Abbott Laboratories in a report on Wednesday, April 24th. The Goldman Sachs Group initiated coverage on shares of Abbott Laboratories in a research report on Thursday, May 30th. They set a “buy” rating and a $121.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Evercore ISI upped their price objective on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $120.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 4th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Abbott Laboratories has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $120.64.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Lisa D. Earnhardt sold 22,852 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $106.25, for a total transaction of $2,428,025.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 61,462 shares in the company, valued at $6,530,337.50. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other Abbott Laboratories news, EVP Jr. Robert E. Funck sold 10,097 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $104.57, for a total transaction of $1,055,843.29. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 211,341 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $22,099,928.37. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Lisa D. Earnhardt sold 22,852 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $106.25, for a total transaction of $2,428,025.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 61,462 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,530,337.50. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.10% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

About Abbott Laboratories

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.