Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) Stock Price Down 0.1%

Shares of Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) dropped 0.1% on Thursday . The company traded as low as $114.52 and last traded at $114.82. Approximately 1,393,637 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 76% from the average daily volume of 5,787,023 shares. The stock had previously closed at $114.88.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ABT has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Piper Sandler initiated coverage on shares of Abbott Laboratories in a research report on Thursday. They set an “overweight” rating and a $131.00 price objective on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $125.00 price objective on shares of Abbott Laboratories in a research report on Tuesday, June 4th. Barclays boosted their price objective on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $140.00 to $143.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, July 29th. Edward Jones cut shares of Abbott Laboratories from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 30th. Finally, Evercore ISI cut their price target on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $125.00 to $120.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, July 2nd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Abbott Laboratories currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $123.33.

Abbott Laboratories Trading Down 0.9 %

The stock’s 50 day moving average is $110.12 and its two-hundred day moving average is $108.61. The company has a market capitalization of $198.13 billion, a PE ratio of 35.37, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.90 and a beta of 0.72. The company has a quick ratio of 1.18, a current ratio of 1.68 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33.

Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 18th. The healthcare product maker reported $1.14 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.10 by $0.04. Abbott Laboratories had a net margin of 13.65% and a return on equity of 20.18%. The company had revenue of $10.38 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $10.37 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.08 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Abbott Laboratories will post 4.66 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Robert B. Ford sold 141,679 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $116.41, for a total transaction of $16,492,852.39. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 220,059 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $25,617,068.19. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Company insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Abbott Laboratories

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Unique Wealth Strategies LLC acquired a new stake in Abbott Laboratories in the second quarter worth about $28,000. Transcendent Capital Group LLC acquired a new stake in Abbott Laboratories in the fourth quarter worth about $29,000. Richardson Financial Services Inc. acquired a new stake in Abbott Laboratories in the fourth quarter worth about $29,000. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Abbott Laboratories in the first quarter worth about $30,000. Finally, Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. acquired a new stake in Abbott Laboratories in the second quarter worth about $32,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.18% of the company’s stock.

About Abbott Laboratories

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.