Swedbank AB Has $256.85 Million Holdings in Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT)

Swedbank AB cut its holdings in shares of Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) by 24.7% during the third quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 2,252,896 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock after selling 739,577 shares during the quarter. Swedbank AB’s holdings in Abbott Laboratories were worth $256,853,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in ABT. Unique Wealth Strategies LLC acquired a new position in Abbott Laboratories during the 2nd quarter valued at about $28,000. Richardson Financial Services Inc. acquired a new position in Abbott Laboratories during the 4th quarter valued at about $29,000. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Abbott Laboratories during the 1st quarter valued at about $30,000. Future Financial Wealth Managment LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Abbott Laboratories in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Finally, Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. acquired a new stake in shares of Abbott Laboratories in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $32,000. 75.18% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at Abbott Laboratories

In other news, CEO Robert B. Ford sold 141,679 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 of the company’s stock, valued at $25,617,068.19. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 1.10% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently weighed in on ABT shares. Piper Sandler started coverage on shares of Abbott Laboratories in a research report on Thursday, September 19th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $131.00 price target on the stock. Citigroup increased their price target on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $119.00 to $127.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 22nd. Edward Jones downgraded shares of Abbott Laboratories from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 30th. Raymond James reissued a “buy” rating and set a $129.00 target price (up from $122.00) on shares of Abbott Laboratories in a research note on Monday. Finally, Barclays increased their target price on Abbott Laboratories from $140.00 to $143.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, July 29th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $125.54.

Abbott Laboratories Stock Performance

ABT stock traded down $1.25 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $116.00. 2,870,815 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 5,703,834. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a current ratio of 1.68 and a quick ratio of 1.18. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $113.31 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $108.32. Abbott Laboratories has a one year low of $90.87 and a one year high of $121.64. The firm has a market capitalization of $201.80 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.45, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.74 and a beta of 0.72.

Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, July 18th. The healthcare product maker reported $1.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.10 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $10.38 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $10.37 billion. Abbott Laboratories had a net margin of 13.65% and a return on equity of 20.18%. Abbott Laboratories’s quarterly revenue was up 4.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.08 earnings per share. Equities research analysts forecast that Abbott Laboratories will post 4.66 EPS for the current year.

Abbott Laboratories Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, October 15th will be paid a $0.55 dividend. This represents a $2.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.90%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, October 15th. Abbott Laboratories’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) 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.