First National Trust Co Reduces Stake in Abbott Laboratories

First National Trust Co has reduced its holdings in Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) by 16.4% during the fourth quarter, as reported in their recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). After selling 12,596 shares, the institutional investor currently owns 64,106 shares of the healthcare product company, with a total value of approximately $7,251,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently altered their positions in Abbott. For instance, Groupama Asset Management increased its stake by 22.2% in the third quarter, acquiring an additional 41,557 shares to reach a total of 228,448 shares, valued at $26,000. Noble Wealth Management PBC purchased a new share position worth about $26,000 during the fourth quarter. Similarly, NewSquare Capital LLC raised its holdings by 78.4%, acquiring an additional 105 shares and bringing its total to 239 shares, valued at approximately $27,000. Rialto Wealth Management LLC entered a new position in Abbott Laboratories valued at about $29,000, while Peterson Financial Group Inc. also purchased shares worth approximately $32,000 in the third quarter. Currently, institutional investors own about 75.18% of the company's stock.

Performance of Abbott Laboratories Stock

The stock opened at $129.71 on a recent Friday. Abbott Laboratories has a 50-day simple moving average of $126.90 and a 200-day simple moving average of $119.29. The company boasts a market cap of $224.97 billion, with a P/E ratio of 16.96, a P/E/G ratio of 2.52, and a beta of 0.69. Over the past year, Abbott's stock has seen a low of $99.71 and a high of $141.23. The company maintains a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a quick ratio of 1.14, and a current ratio of 1.60.

Dividend Announcement by Abbott Laboratories

Recently, the firm announced a quarterly dividend set to be paid on Thursday, May 15. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, April 15 will receive a dividend of $0.59. This results in an annualized dividend of $2.36, providing a dividend yield of 1.82%. The ex-dividend date for this payment is also April 15. Currently, Abbott Laboratories has a payout ratio of 30.85%.

Analyst Opinions on Abbott Laboratories

Several brokerages have shared their analyses of Abbott Laboratories. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their target price from $138.00 to $154.00, giving the stock a "buy" rating. Barclays reaffirmed an "overweight" rating with an updated price objective of $158.00. Meanwhile, Royal Bank of Canada retained an "outperform" rating, setting a price target of $135.00. Stifel Nicolaus also increased their target price from $130.00 to $135.00, providing a "buy" rating, while UBS Group raised their target from $146.00 to $148.00, maintaining a "buy" rating. Currently, the consensus rating for Abbott Laboratories is "Moderate Buy," with an average price target of $137.94.

Insider Transactions at Abbott Laboratories

In other news, Andrea F. Wainer, an executive vice president at Abbott Laboratories, sold 949 shares on March 3rd at an average price of $138.17, totaling $131,123.33. Following this sale, she owns 74,381 shares valued at around $10,277,222.77, marking a decrease of 1.26% in her ownership. Additionally, EVP Lisa D. Earnhardt sold 91,167 shares on March 6th at an average price of $133.82, for a total of $12,199,967.94. Earnhardt now owns 71,928 shares worth roughly $9,625,404.96, a 55.90% decrease in her position. Over the last quarter, insiders sold a total of 116,449 shares worth approximately $15,463,316, indicating that insiders hold around 0.47% of the company's stock.

Overview of Abbott Laboratories

Abbott Laboratories is a global healthcare company that develops, manufactures, and sells a range of healthcare products. The company operates across four segments: Established Pharmaceutical Products, Diagnostic Products, Nutritional Products, and Medical Devices. Abbott's offerings include generic pharmaceuticals for various health conditions, vaccines, and products to support health and nutrition.

Abbott, Investment, Stocks