Magnetar Financial LLC Buys 294,939 Shares of Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT)

Magnetar Financial LLC lifted its stake in shares of Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) by 60.5% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 782,794 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock after buying an additional 294,939 shares during the quarter. Abbott Laboratories comprises about 1.7% of Magnetar Financial LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 11th largest holding. Magnetar Financial LLC’s holdings in Abbott Laboratories were worth $81,340,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Unique Wealth Strategies LLC bought a new position in Abbott Laboratories during the second quarter worth about $28,000. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Abbott Laboratories during the 1st quarter worth approximately $30,000. Richardson Financial Services Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Abbott Laboratories during the 4th quarter worth approximately $29,000. Transcendent Capital Group LLC bought a new position in Abbott Laboratories in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Finally, Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. acquired a new position in Abbott Laboratories during the second quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Institutional investors own 75.18% of the company’s stock.

Abbott Laboratories Stock Performance

Shares of Abbott Laboratories stock opened at $113.70 on Monday. The company has a market cap of $197.80 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.42, a PEG ratio of 2.90 and a beta of 0.72. The company has a current ratio of 1.68, a quick ratio of 1.18 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $110.50 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $108.45. Abbott Laboratories has a 1-year low of $89.67 and a 1-year high of $121.64.

Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) last released 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. 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 for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $10.37 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.08 EPS. Abbott Laboratories’s quarterly revenue was up 4.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts anticipate that Abbott Laboratories will post 4.66 EPS for the current year.

Abbott Laboratories Dividend Announcement

The company 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. This represents a $2.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.93%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, October 15th. Abbott Laboratories’s payout ratio is 68.54%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

ABT has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Edward Jones lowered Abbott Laboratories from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 30th. Piper Sandler initiated coverage on shares of Abbott Laboratories in a research note on Thursday. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $131.00 price target on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group started coverage on shares of Abbott Laboratories in a research note on Thursday, May 30th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $121.00 price objective for the company. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $125.00 price target on shares of Abbott Laboratories in a report on Tuesday, June 4th. Finally, Evercore ISI dropped their target price on Abbott Laboratories from $125.00 to $120.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, July 2nd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Abbott Laboratories has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $123.33.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Abbott Laboratories news, CEO Robert B. Ford sold 141,679 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on 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 transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 220,059 shares in the company, valued at $25,617,068.19. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 1.10% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.