Carret Asset Management LLC Decreases Stock Position in Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT)

Carret Asset Management LLC cut its stake in shares of Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) by 1.2% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 50,143 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock after selling 600 shares during the quarter. Carret Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Abbott Laboratories were worth $5,717,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Financial Management Professionals Inc. boosted its position in Abbott Laboratories by 31.8% during the 3rd quarter. Financial Management Professionals Inc. now owns 700 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock valued at $80,000 after buying an additional 169 shares during the period. Amarillo National Bank grew its position in shares of Abbott Laboratories by 7.6% in the 3rd quarter. Amarillo National Bank now owns 2,306 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock worth $263,000 after buying an additional 163 shares during the last quarter. Goldstein Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Abbott Laboratories in the third quarter worth $257,000. Clear Harbor Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in Abbott Laboratories by 3.2% in the third quarter. Clear Harbor Asset Management LLC now owns 52,381 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock valued at $5,972,000 after acquiring an additional 1,605 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Smith Salley Wealth Management boosted its stake in shares of Abbott Laboratories by 2.6% during the 3rd quarter. Smith Salley Wealth Management now owns 170,650 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock valued at $19,456,000 after purchasing an additional 4,253 shares in the last quarter. 75.18% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Abbott Laboratories

In other Abbott Laboratories news, CEO Robert B. Ford sold 141,679 shares of Abbott Laboratories stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $116.41, for a total value of $16,492,852.39. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 220,059 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $25,617,068.19. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have commented on ABT. Mizuho raised their price objective on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $115.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, October 17th. Barclays raised their target price on Abbott Laboratories from $140.00 to $143.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, July 29th. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on Abbott Laboratories from $107.00 to $117.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, October 17th. UBS Group boosted their target price on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $143.00 to $146.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, October 17th. Finally, Raymond James reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $129.00 price target (up from $122.00) on shares of Abbott Laboratories in a research note on Monday, October 14th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $129.67.

Abbott Laboratories Price Performance

Shares of ABT opened at $114.22 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $198.70 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.58, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.74 and a beta of 0.72. Abbott Laboratories has a twelve month low of $91.64 and a twelve month high of $121.64. The company has a quick ratio of 1.18, a current ratio of 1.68 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $114.63 and a 200 day moving average of $108.67.

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. The firm had revenue of $10.64 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $10.55 billion. Abbott Laboratories had a return on equity of 20.18% and a net margin of 13.65%. The company’s revenue was up 4.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.14 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Abbott Laboratories will post 4.66 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Abbott Laboratories Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, October 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.55 per share. This represents a $2.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.93%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, October 15th. Abbott Laboratories’s payout ratio is presently 68.54%.

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.