Sector Gamma AS Acquires New Holdings in Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT)

Sector Gamma AS acquired a new stake in shares of Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 39,876 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock, valued at approximately $4,389,000. Abbott Laboratories makes up 1.1% of Sector Gamma AS’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 28th biggest position.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Zevenbergen Capital Investments LLC raised its position in Abbott Laboratories by 0.6% in the third quarter. Zevenbergen Capital Investments LLC now owns 21,419 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock worth $2,074,000 after acquiring an additional 130 shares in the last quarter. Perigon Wealth Management LLC raised its position in Abbott Laboratories by 5.2% in the fourth quarter. Perigon Wealth Management LLC now owns 47,080 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock worth $5,182,000 after acquiring an additional 2,317 shares in the last quarter. Rockland Trust Co. raised its position in Abbott Laboratories by 1.5% in the third quarter. Rockland Trust Co. now owns 91,868 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock worth $8,897,000 after acquiring an additional 1,343 shares in the last quarter. VisionPoint Advisory Group LLC raised its position in Abbott Laboratories by 7.4% in the third quarter. VisionPoint Advisory Group LLC now owns 3,106 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock worth $301,000 after acquiring an additional 215 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Gradient Investments LLC raised its holdings in Abbott Laboratories by 4.7% during the 4th quarter. Gradient Investments LLC now owns 257,508 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock worth $28,344,000 after buying an additional 11,508 shares during the period. 75.18% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Abbott Laboratories Stock Performance

Shares of ABT stock traded up $0.67 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $107.53. 3,575,566 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 5,219,304. Abbott Laboratories has a fifty-two week low of $89.67 and a fifty-two week high of $121.64. The stock has a market capitalization of $186.58 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.50, a P/E/G ratio of 2.57 and a beta of 0.74. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $113.64 and a 200-day moving average price of $108.03. The company has a quick ratio of 1.16, a current ratio of 1.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35.

Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 17th. The healthcare product maker reported $0.98 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.96 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $9.96 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.88 billion. Abbott Laboratories had a return on equity of 20.32% and a net margin of 13.96%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 2.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.03 earnings per share. Analysts predict that Abbott Laboratories will post 4.62 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Abbott Laboratories Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 15th. Investors of record on Monday, April 15th will be given a $0.55 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 12th. This represents a $2.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.05%. Abbott Laboratories’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 68.54%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have issued reports on ABT. Raymond James restated a “buy” rating and set a $124.00 price objective on shares of Abbott Laboratories in a report on Wednesday. Barclays lowered their target price on Abbott Laboratories from $141.00 to $140.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 22nd. Evercore ISI lifted their target price on Abbott Laboratories from $120.00 to $125.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 4th. Citigroup lifted their target price on Abbott Laboratories from $126.00 to $128.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 3rd. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada lowered their target price on Abbott Laboratories from $128.00 to $125.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 18th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Abbott Laboratories presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $121.50.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Abbott Laboratories news, EVP Andrea F. Wainer sold 42,500 shares of Abbott Laboratories stock in a transaction on Monday, January 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $112.50, for a total transaction of $4,781,250.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 65,027 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,315,537.50. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other news, EVP Daniel Gesua Sive Salvadori sold 963 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, March 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $118.50, for a total value of $114,115.50. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 125,697 shares in the company, valued at $14,895,094.50. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Andrea F. Wainer sold 42,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, January 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $112.50, for a total value of $4,781,250.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 65,027 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,315,537.50. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 56,435 shares of company stock valued at $6,451,298 over the last ninety days. 1.10% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.