Clifford Swan Investment Counsel LLC Has $25.50 Million Stake in Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT)

Clifford Swan Investment Counsel LLC lowered its stake in Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) by 0.3% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 231,651 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock after selling 799 shares during the period. Abbott Laboratories makes up approximately 1.0% of Clifford Swan Investment Counsel LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 26th biggest position. Clifford Swan Investment Counsel LLC’s holdings in Abbott Laboratories were worth $25,498,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Cutler Investment Counsel LLC boosted its stake in Abbott Laboratories by 4.8% during the 3rd quarter. Cutler Investment Counsel LLC now owns 3,388 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock valued at $328,000 after purchasing an additional 154 shares during the period. Concord Wealth Partners grew its stake in shares of Abbott Laboratories by 223.3% in the third quarter. Concord Wealth Partners now owns 2,780 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock worth $269,000 after acquiring an additional 1,920 shares during the last quarter. Hixon Zuercher LLC increased its position in Abbott Laboratories by 2.4% during the third quarter. Hixon Zuercher LLC now owns 18,943 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock worth $1,835,000 after acquiring an additional 448 shares during the period. WealthShield Partners LLC raised its stake in Abbott Laboratories by 15.9% during the 3rd quarter. WealthShield Partners LLC now owns 3,117 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock valued at $302,000 after purchasing an additional 428 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Hendley & Co. Inc. boosted its holdings in Abbott Laboratories by 3.0% in the 3rd quarter. Hendley & Co. Inc. now owns 112,114 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock valued at $10,858,000 after purchasing an additional 3,318 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.18% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other Abbott Laboratories news, VP John A. Jr. Mccoy sold 472 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $118.50, for a total transaction of $55,932.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 18,760 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,223,060. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other Abbott Laboratories news, EVP Andrea F. Wainer sold 12,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $120.00, for a total transaction of $1,500,000.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 78,704 shares in the company, valued at $9,444,480. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, VP John A. Jr. Mccoy sold 472 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $118.50, for a total value of $55,932.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 18,760 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,223,060. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 13,935 shares of company stock valued at $1,670,048. Company insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

Abbott Laboratories Price Performance

Abbott Laboratories stock traded down $0.02 on Friday, reaching $105.90. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 3,610,492 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,320,693. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $112.52 and its 200 day moving average price is $108.71. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a quick ratio of 1.16 and a current ratio of 1.64. The company has a market cap of $183.76 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.99, a PEG ratio of 2.55 and a beta of 0.76. Abbott Laboratories has a twelve month low of $89.67 and a twelve month high of $121.64.

Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 17th. The healthcare product maker reported $0.98 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.96 by $0.02. Abbott Laboratories had a net margin of 13.96% and a return on equity of 20.32%. The firm had revenue of $9.96 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.88 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.03 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 2.2% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts expect that Abbott Laboratories will post 4.62 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Abbott Laboratories Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, April 15th will be given a $0.55 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 12th. This represents a $2.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.08%. Abbott Laboratories’s payout ratio is 68.54%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

ABT has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Barclays cut their price objective on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $141.00 to $140.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 22nd. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their price objective on Abbott Laboratories from $128.00 to $125.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 18th. Citigroup boosted their price target on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $126.00 to $128.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 3rd. Raymond James reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $124.00 price target on shares of Abbott Laboratories in a research report on Wednesday, April 24th. Finally, Evercore ISI boosted their price target on Abbott Laboratories from $120.00 to $125.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 4th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $121.50.

Abbott Laboratories Company 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.