Murphy & Mullick Capital Management Corp Takes $600,000 Position in Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT)

Murphy & Mullick Capital Management Corp purchased a new position in shares of Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 5,305 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock, valued at approximately $600,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Cape Investment Advisory Inc. lifted its position in shares of Abbott Laboratories by 6.6% during the fourth quarter. Cape Investment Advisory Inc. now owns 1,236 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock worth $140,000 after purchasing an additional 76 shares in the last quarter. Cyrus J. Lawrence LLC lifted its holdings in Abbott Laboratories by 9.0% in the 4th quarter. Cyrus J. Lawrence LLC now owns 954 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock worth $107,000 after buying an additional 79 shares in the last quarter. Jacobson & Schmitt Advisors LLC boosted its position in Abbott Laboratories by 2.9% in the 4th quarter. Jacobson & Schmitt Advisors LLC now owns 2,827 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock valued at $320,000 after buying an additional 80 shares during the last quarter. LMG Wealth Partners LLC grew its stake in shares of Abbott Laboratories by 3.8% during the fourth quarter. LMG Wealth Partners LLC now owns 2,161 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock valued at $244,000 after acquiring an additional 80 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Glass Wealth Management Co LLC increased its position in shares of Abbott Laboratories by 3.2% during the fourth quarter. Glass Wealth Management Co LLC now owns 2,640 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock worth $299,000 after acquiring an additional 81 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.18% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Abbott Laboratories

In other news, EVP Andrea F. Wainer sold 949 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $138.17, for a total value of $131,123.33. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 74,381 shares in the company, valued at $10,277,222.77. This trade represents a 1.26 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Lisa D. Earnhardt sold 91,167 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $133.82, for a total value of $12,199,967.94. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 71,928 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,625,404.96. The trade was a 55.90 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 116,449 shares of company stock valued at $15,463,316. 1.10% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Abbott Laboratories Stock Performance

ABT stock opened at $125.46 on Wednesday. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $129.04 and its two-hundred day moving average is $120.12. The stock has a market capitalization of $217.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.40, a PEG ratio of 2.52 and a beta of 0.70. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a current ratio of 1.60. Abbott Laboratories has a 1 year low of $99.71 and a 1 year high of $141.23.

Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, January 22nd. The healthcare product maker reported $1.34 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.34. The firm had revenue of $10.97 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $11.03 billion. Abbott Laboratories had a net margin of 31.95% and a return on equity of 20.74%. Abbott Laboratories’s revenue was up 7.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $1.19 EPS. On average, research analysts predict that Abbott Laboratories will post 5.14 EPS for the current year.

Abbott Laboratories Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, April 15th will be given a dividend of $0.59 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 15th. This represents a $2.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.88%. Abbott Laboratories’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 30.85%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price objective on Abbott Laboratories from $138.00 to $154.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 4th. Bank of America lifted their price target on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $133.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, March 10th. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $135.00 price objective on shares of Abbott Laboratories in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $133.00 to $136.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price target on Abbott Laboratories from $130.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $137.94.

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.