Ritholtz Wealth Management Grows Holdings in Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT)

Ritholtz Wealth Management increased its position in Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) by 2.4% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 41,894 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock after buying an additional 983 shares during the period. Ritholtz Wealth Management’s holdings in Abbott Laboratories were worth $4,776,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of ABT. Unique Wealth Strategies LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Abbott Laboratories during the second quarter worth $28,000. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Abbott Laboratories in the 1st quarter valued at about $30,000. Richardson Financial Services Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Abbott Laboratories during the 4th quarter worth about $29,000. Transcendent Capital Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Abbott Laboratories in the fourth quarter worth approximately $29,000. Finally, Future Financial Wealth Managment LLC purchased a new stake in Abbott Laboratories in the third quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.18% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Piper Sandler Companies started coverage on shares of Abbott Laboratories in a research note on Thursday, September 19th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $131.00 price objective for the company. Piper Sandler assumed coverage on Abbott Laboratories in a report on Thursday, September 19th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $131.00 price objective on the stock. Barclays lifted their price objective on Abbott Laboratories from $140.00 to $143.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, July 29th. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price target on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $125.00 to $130.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday. Finally, Evercore ISI boosted their price objective on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $120.00 to $124.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 1st. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Abbott Laboratories currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $125.15.

Insider Activity 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 stock was sold at an average price of $116.41, for a total value of $16,492,852.39. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 220,059 shares in the company, valued at approximately $25,617,068.19. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 1.10% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Abbott Laboratories Stock Up 0.4 %

NYSE:ABT traded up $0.50 on Friday, reaching $116.12. The stock had a trading volume of 3,471,291 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,728,511. Abbott Laboratories has a 12-month low of $89.67 and a 12-month high of $121.64. The stock has a market cap of $202.01 billion, a P/E ratio of 36.18, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.74 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. The company has a 50-day moving average of $113.13 and a 200 day moving average of $108.35.

Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, July 18th. The healthcare product maker reported $1.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.10 by $0.04. Abbott Laboratories had a return on equity of 20.18% and a net margin of 13.65%. The company had revenue of $10.38 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $10.37 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.08 EPS. Abbott Laboratories’s quarterly revenue was up 4.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts predict that Abbott Laboratories will post 4.66 earnings per share for the current year.

Abbott Laboratories Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, October 15th will be paid a $0.55 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, October 15th. This represents a $2.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.89%. Abbott Laboratories’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 68.54%.

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.