Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. Boosts Stock Position in Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT)

Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. increased its position in Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) by 1.5% in the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 338,266 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock after purchasing an additional 5,047 shares during the period. Abbott Laboratories accounts for about 0.7% of Crossmark Global Holdings Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 20th biggest position. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc.’s holdings in Abbott Laboratories were worth $38,566,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of ABT. Atomi Financial Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Abbott Laboratories by 76.5% in the 1st quarter. Atomi Financial Group Inc. now owns 10,254 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock valued at $1,166,000 after acquiring an additional 4,445 shares in the last quarter. Choate Investment Advisors lifted its position in Abbott Laboratories by 10.5% during the first quarter. Choate Investment Advisors now owns 175,537 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock valued at $19,952,000 after purchasing an additional 16,717 shares during the last quarter. NorthRock Partners LLC grew its stake in Abbott Laboratories by 12.2% in the 1st quarter. NorthRock Partners LLC now owns 20,542 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock worth $2,335,000 after buying an additional 2,239 shares in the last quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Abbott Laboratories by 16.5% during the 1st quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. now owns 3,099 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock worth $352,000 after acquiring an additional 439 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Meeder Advisory Services Inc. increased its stake in Abbott Laboratories by 4.4% in the first quarter. Meeder Advisory Services Inc. now owns 22,598 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock valued at $2,568,000 after acquiring an additional 948 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 75.18% of the company’s stock.

Abbott Laboratories Trading Up 1.1 %

Shares of Abbott Laboratories stock traded up $1.29 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $116.59. 5,685,893 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 5,410,446. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $115.32 and a 200-day moving average of $109.19. Abbott Laboratories has a 12 month low of $92.43 and a 12 month high of $121.64. The company has a market cap of $202.22 billion, a PE ratio of 35.44, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.75 and a beta of 0.72. 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 (NYSE:ABT) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, October 16th. The healthcare product maker reported $1.21 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.20 by $0.01. Abbott Laboratories had a net margin of 13.99% and a return on equity of 20.18%. The firm had revenue of $10.64 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $10.55 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.14 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 4.9% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts expect that Abbott Laboratories will post 4.67 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Abbott Laboratories Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, October 15th will be paid a $0.55 dividend. This represents a $2.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.89%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, October 15th. Abbott Laboratories’s payout ratio is presently 66.87%.

Insider Activity at Abbott Laboratories

In related news, CEO Robert B. Ford sold 141,679 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $116.41, for a total transaction of $16,492,852.39. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 220,059 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $25,617,068.19. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. 1.10% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have issued reports on ABT. Piper Sandler Companies began coverage on Abbott Laboratories in a research note on Thursday, September 19th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $131.00 price target for the company. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price target on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $125.00 to $130.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 8th. UBS Group boosted their price objective on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $143.00 to $146.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, October 17th. Sanford C. Bernstein lifted their target price on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $133.00 to $138.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. Finally, Piper Sandler upped their price target on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $131.00 to $133.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Abbott Laboratories currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $130.07.

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.