O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC Buys 38,112 Shares of Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT)

O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC raised its position in Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) by 23.7% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 198,839 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock after buying an additional 38,112 shares during the period. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Abbott Laboratories were worth $22,491,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Noble Wealth Management PBC acquired a new position in Abbott Laboratories during the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. NewSquare Capital LLC raised its stake in shares of Abbott Laboratories by 78.4% during the fourth quarter. NewSquare Capital LLC now owns 239 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 105 shares during the last quarter. WealthTrak Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in Abbott Laboratories in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Rialto Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Abbott Laboratories in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Finally, Wingate Wealth Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in Abbott Laboratories during the 4th quarter worth $34,000. Institutional investors own 75.18% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, SVP Eric Shroff sold 562 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $138.17, for a total value of $77,651.54. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 31,970 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,417,294.90. This represents a 1.73 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Andrea F. Wainer sold 949 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $138.17, for a total value of $131,123.33. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 74,381 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,277,222.77. This represents a 1.26 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 116,449 shares of company stock valued at $15,463,316 over the last ninety days. 0.46% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on ABT shares. Citigroup raised their price target on Abbott Laboratories from $135.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 4th. Royal Bank of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and set a $135.00 target price on shares of Abbott Laboratories in a report on Tuesday, January 21st. Argus raised Abbott Laboratories to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price objective on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $130.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Finally, UBS Group upped their target price on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $146.00 to $148.00 and gave the company 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 assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $137.94.

Abbott Laboratories Trading Down 0.4 %

NYSE ABT opened at $130.81 on Monday. The company has a market cap of $226.87 billion, a PE ratio of 17.10, a PEG ratio of 2.52 and a beta of 0.70. Abbott Laboratories has a 12 month low of $99.71 and a 12 month high of $141.23. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $130.05 and a 200-day moving average of $120.39. 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 released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 22nd. The healthcare product maker reported $1.34 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $1.34. Abbott Laboratories had a net margin of 31.95% and a return on equity of 20.74%. The company had revenue of $10.97 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $11.03 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.19 EPS. Abbott Laboratories’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Abbott Laboratories will post 5.14 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Abbott Laboratories Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, April 15th will be paid a $0.59 dividend. This represents a $2.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.80%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 15th. Abbott Laboratories’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 30.85%.

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.