Aptus Capital Advisors LLC Increases Holdings in Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT)

Aptus Capital Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) by 21.8% during the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 129,531 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock after purchasing an additional 23,201 shares during the quarter. Aptus Capital Advisors LLC’s holdings in Abbott Laboratories were worth $14,768,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Unique Wealth Strategies LLC bought a new position in Abbott Laboratories during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $28,000. Future Financial Wealth Managment LLC bought a new stake in shares of Abbott Laboratories in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $31,000. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Abbott Laboratories by 78.4% in 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. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. bought a new stake in shares of Abbott Laboratories in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $32,000. Finally, Highline Wealth Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of Abbott Laboratories in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $37,000. 75.18% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Abbott Laboratories

In other news, CEO Robert B. Ford sold 141,679 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction 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 $25,617,068.19. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Company insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

Abbott Laboratories Stock Down 0.2 %

NYSE:ABT traded down $0.25 during trading hours on Tuesday, reaching $116.55. 676,123 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 5,690,673. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $115.39 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $109.28. The stock has a market capitalization of $202.15 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.50, a P/E/G ratio of 2.74 and a beta of 0.72. Abbott Laboratories has a 1 year low of $94.50 and a 1 year high of $121.64. 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 (NYSE:ABT) last posted its quarterly earnings results 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 during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $10.55 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.14 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 4.9% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts predict that Abbott Laboratories will post 4.67 earnings per share for the current year.

Abbott Laboratories Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared 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 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.89%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, October 15th. Abbott Laboratories’s dividend payout ratio is currently 66.87%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

ABT has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. UBS Group lifted their price objective on Abbott Laboratories from $143.00 to $146.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. Raymond James restated a “buy” rating and issued a $129.00 target price (up previously from $122.00) on shares of Abbott Laboratories in a research note on Monday, October 14th. Barclays raised their target price on Abbott Laboratories from $143.00 to $149.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. Oppenheimer began coverage on Abbott Laboratories in a research note on Tuesday, October 8th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $130.00 target price for the company. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada raised their target price on Abbott Laboratories from $125.00 to $130.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 8th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $130.07.

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.