Zega Financial LLC Takes Position in Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT)

Zega Financial LLC bought a new stake in shares of Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) in the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund bought 3,398 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock, valued at approximately $353,000.

Several other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Unique Wealth Strategies LLC acquired a new position in shares of Abbott Laboratories in the 2nd quarter valued at about $28,000. Transcendent Capital Group LLC purchased a new position in Abbott Laboratories during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Richardson Financial Services Inc. acquired a new position in Abbott Laboratories in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Abbott Laboratories during the 1st quarter worth approximately $30,000. Finally, True Wealth Design LLC increased its holdings in shares of Abbott Laboratories by 1,677.8% during the 4th quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 320 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 302 shares in the last quarter. 75.18% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Abbott Laboratories

In other news, CEO Robert B. Ford sold 141,679 shares of the business’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 transaction of $16,492,852.39. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 220,059 shares in the company, valued at approximately $25,617,068.19. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 1.10% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

ABT has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Citigroup increased their price target on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $119.00 to $127.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, August 22nd. Barclays raised their target price on Abbott Laboratories from $140.00 to $143.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, July 29th. Evercore ISI reduced their price target on Abbott Laboratories from $125.00 to $120.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, July 2nd. The Goldman Sachs Group initiated coverage on Abbott Laboratories in a report on Thursday, May 30th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $121.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Edward Jones downgraded Abbott Laboratories from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 30th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Abbott Laboratories has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $121.80.

Abbott Laboratories Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:ABT opened at $118.13 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a current ratio of 1.68 and a quick ratio of 1.18. Abbott Laboratories has a 1 year low of $89.67 and a 1 year high of $121.64. The firm has a market capitalization of $205.50 billion, a PE ratio of 36.80, a P/E/G ratio of 2.90 and a beta of 0.72. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $109.88 and its 200-day moving average price is $108.56.

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, topping the consensus estimate of $1.10 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $10.38 billion for 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%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 4.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.08 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Abbott Laboratories will post 4.66 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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.