GHP Investment Advisors Inc. Grows Holdings in Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT)

GHP Investment Advisors Inc. raised its position in shares of Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) by 0.7% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 27,866 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock after purchasing an additional 201 shares during the quarter. GHP Investment Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Abbott Laboratories were worth $3,177,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of ABT. Unique Wealth Strategies LLC purchased a new stake in Abbott Laboratories in the 2nd quarter worth $28,000. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Abbott Laboratories during the first quarter worth about $30,000. Future Financial Wealth Managment LLC bought a new stake in Abbott Laboratories during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. purchased a new position in Abbott Laboratories in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $32,000. Finally, Ridgewood Investments LLC bought a new position in Abbott Laboratories in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $37,000. 75.18% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Abbott Laboratories Price Performance

Abbott Laboratories stock opened at $114.22 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $198.70 billion, a PE ratio of 35.58, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.74 and a beta of 0.72. Abbott Laboratories has a 12-month low of $91.64 and a 12-month high of $121.64. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $114.63 and a 200-day moving average price of $108.67. The company has a current ratio of 1.68, a quick ratio of 1.18 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33.

Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, October 16th. The healthcare product maker reported $1.21 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.20 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $10.64 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates 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 for the quarter was up 4.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.14 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Abbott Laboratories will post 4.66 EPS for the current year.

Abbott Laboratories Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, October 15th will be given a dividend of $0.55 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, October 15th. This represents a $2.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.93%. Abbott Laboratories’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 68.54%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Robert B. Ford sold 141,679 shares of Abbott Laboratories stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $116.41, for a total transaction of $16,492,852.39. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 220,059 shares in the company, valued at $25,617,068.19. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

ABT has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their target price on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $125.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 8th. Mizuho raised their price objective on Abbott Laboratories from $115.00 to $130.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. Piper Sandler Companies began coverage on Abbott Laboratories in a research report on Thursday, September 19th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $131.00 target price on the stock. Barclays raised their price target on Abbott Laboratories from $140.00 to $143.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, July 29th. Finally, Edward Jones cut Abbott Laboratories from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 30th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Abbott Laboratories presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $129.67.

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.