E Fund Management Co. Ltd. Has $453,000 Stock Holdings in Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT)

E Fund Management Co. Ltd. grew its holdings in shares of Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) by 14.9% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 4,119 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock after purchasing an additional 533 shares during the period. E Fund Management Co. Ltd.’s holdings in Abbott Laboratories were worth $453,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of ABT. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its stake in shares of Abbott Laboratories by 4.3% during the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 31,208,711 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock worth $3,022,564,000 after acquiring an additional 1,298,219 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp grew its holdings in Abbott Laboratories by 1.5% during the third quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 23,016,235 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock valued at $2,229,122,000 after purchasing an additional 343,559 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Abbott Laboratories by 1.7% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 12,360,908 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock valued at $1,346,959,000 after purchasing an additional 207,031 shares during the period. Fisher Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Abbott Laboratories by 2.4% during the 4th quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 9,930,872 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock worth $1,093,091,000 after buying an additional 236,741 shares during the period. Finally, Flossbach Von Storch AG grew its stake in Abbott Laboratories by 1.5% in the 4th quarter. Flossbach Von Storch AG now owns 9,149,611 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock valued at $1,007,098,000 after buying an additional 135,821 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.18% of the company’s stock.

Abbott Laboratories Price Performance

Abbott Laboratories stock traded down $0.27 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $104.67. 5,897,251 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 5,564,602. The company has a market capitalization of $182.09 billion, a PE ratio of 32.61, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.55 and a beta of 0.76. The business has a fifty day moving average of $111.69 and a 200 day moving average of $108.82. Abbott Laboratories has a 1-year low of $89.67 and a 1-year high of $121.64. The company has a quick ratio of 1.11, a current ratio of 1.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32.

Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, April 17th. The healthcare product maker reported $0.98 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.96 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $9.96 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $9.88 billion. Abbott Laboratories had a net margin of 13.96% and a return on equity of 20.18%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $1.03 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Abbott Laboratories will post 4.62 earnings per share for the current year.

Abbott Laboratories Dividend Announcement

The firm 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 of this dividend is Friday, April 12th. This represents a $2.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.10%. Abbott Laboratories’s payout ratio is 68.54%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Evercore ISI upped their price target on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $120.00 to $125.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, April 4th. Raymond James reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $124.00 price target on shares of Abbott Laboratories in a research report on Wednesday, April 24th. Citigroup raised their price objective on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $126.00 to $128.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 3rd. Royal Bank of Canada reduced their price target on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $128.00 to $125.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 18th. Finally, Barclays reduced their price objective on Abbott Laboratories from $141.00 to $140.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 22nd. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $121.50.

Insider Transactions at Abbott Laboratories

In related news, EVP Andrea F. Wainer sold 12,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 23rd. The shares were 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 approximately $9,444,480. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In other news, EVP Andrea F. Wainer sold 12,500 shares of Abbott Laboratories stock in a transaction on Friday, February 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $120.00, for a total value of $1,500,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 78,704 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,444,480. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Daniel Gesua Sive Salvadori sold 963 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 $114,115.50. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 125,697 shares in the company, valued at $14,895,094.50. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 36,787 shares of company stock worth $4,098,073. Insiders own 0.47% 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.