Kentucky Retirement Systems Cuts Position in Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT)

by · The Markets Daily

Kentucky Retirement Systems cut its stake in Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT – Free Report) by 1.2% during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 118,139 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock after selling 1,425 shares during the quarter. Kentucky Retirement Systems’ holdings in Abbott Laboratories were worth $15,671,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Redwood Park Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Abbott Laboratories during the 4th quarter worth $25,000. Noble Wealth Management PBC purchased a new position in Abbott Laboratories during the 4th quarter worth $26,000. NewSquare Capital LLC grew its stake in Abbott Laboratories by 78.4% during the 4th 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 purchased a new position in Abbott Laboratories during the 4th quarter worth $28,000. Finally, Rialto Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Abbott Laboratories during the 4th quarter worth $29,000. 75.18% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Leerink Partners began coverage on Abbott Laboratories in a research note on Monday, June 16th. They set a “market perform” rating and a $143.00 target price on the stock. Barclays lifted their price target on Abbott Laboratories from $158.00 to $159.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 17th. Piper Sandler reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $145.00 price target (up previously from $133.00) on shares of Abbott Laboratories in a research report on Thursday, April 17th. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price target on Abbott Laboratories from $138.00 to $154.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 4th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on Abbott Laboratories from $136.00 to $147.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 17th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $142.61.

Check Out Our Latest Report on ABT

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Sally E. Blount sold 2,600 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $129.66, for a total value of $337,116.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 34,058 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,415,960.28. This represents a 7.09% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.46% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Abbott Laboratories Stock Performance

Shares of ABT stock opened at $132.88 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $231.20 billion, a PE ratio of 17.24, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.53 and a beta of 0.73. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $132.19 and a 200-day simple moving average of $126.95. The company has a quick ratio of 1.27, a current ratio of 1.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26. Abbott Laboratories has a 52-week low of $99.71 and a 52-week high of $141.23.

Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT – Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 16th. The healthcare product maker reported $1.09 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.07 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $10.36 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $10.38 billion. Abbott Laboratories had a return on equity of 19.01% and a net margin of 31.89%. On average, equities analysts expect that Abbott Laboratories will post 5.14 EPS for the current year.

Abbott Laboratories Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, July 15th will be issued a $0.59 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, July 15th. This represents a $2.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.78%. Abbott Laboratories’s payout ratio is 30.61%.

Abbott Laboratories Company Profile

(Free Report)

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.

Further Reading

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