Folger Nolan Fleming Douglas Capital Management Inc. Sells 3,851 Shares of Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT)

Folger Nolan Fleming Douglas Capital Management Inc. trimmed its stake in shares of Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) by 3.8% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 97,567 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock after selling 3,851 shares during the period. Abbott Laboratories comprises about 1.2% of Folger Nolan Fleming Douglas Capital Management Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 23rd largest position. Folger Nolan Fleming Douglas Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Abbott Laboratories were worth $11,036,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Groupama Asset Managment grew its stake in shares of Abbott Laboratories by 22.2% during the 3rd quarter. Groupama Asset Managment now owns 228,448 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 41,557 shares in the last quarter. Future Financial Wealth Managment LLC acquired a new position in Abbott Laboratories during the third quarter worth $31,000. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. bought a new position in Abbott Laboratories in the second quarter valued at $32,000. Peterson Financial Group Inc. bought a new stake in Abbott Laboratories during the 3rd quarter worth about $32,000. Finally, Valued Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Abbott Laboratories by 78.4% during the 3rd quarter. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 289 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 127 shares during the last quarter. 75.18% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Abbott Laboratories Price Performance

Abbott Laboratories stock opened at $113.45 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $196.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.48, a PEG ratio of 2.40 and a beta of 0.73. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $115.00 and its 200-day moving average is $112.66. The company has a current ratio of 1.60, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32. Abbott Laboratories has a 12 month low of $99.71 and a 12 month high of $121.64.

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

Abbott Laboratories Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 14th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, January 15th will be issued a $0.59 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, January 15th. This represents a $2.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.08%. This is an increase from Abbott Laboratories’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. Abbott Laboratories’s payout ratio is currently 66.87%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms recently issued reports on ABT. Sanford C. Bernstein upped their target price on Abbott Laboratories from $133.00 to $138.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, October 17th. Mizuho upped their price objective on Abbott Laboratories from $115.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. Royal Bank of Canada raised their target price on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $125.00 to $130.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 8th. Oppenheimer began coverage on shares of Abbott Laboratories in a research note on Tuesday, October 8th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $130.00 price target for the company. Finally, 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. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $131.57.

Abbott Laboratories 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.