Cozad Asset Management Inc. Sells 300 Shares of Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT)

Cozad Asset Management Inc. lessened its position in Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) by 1.8% during the 1st quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 15,971 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock after selling 300 shares during the period. Cozad Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Abbott Laboratories were worth $2,118,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. N.E.W. Advisory Services LLC raised its holdings in Abbott Laboratories by 26.1% in the 1st quarter. N.E.W. Advisory Services LLC now owns 2,229 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock worth $296,000 after acquiring an additional 461 shares during the period. Kirtland Hills Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in Abbott Laboratories by 8.3% in the 1st quarter. Kirtland Hills Capital Management LLC now owns 4,633 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock worth $607,000 after acquiring an additional 357 shares during the period. Meeder Advisory Services Inc. grew its position in Abbott Laboratories by 11.3% in the 1st quarter. Meeder Advisory Services Inc. now owns 30,943 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock worth $4,105,000 after purchasing an additional 3,149 shares during the last quarter. Pinnacle Wealth Management Advisory Group LLC grew its position in Abbott Laboratories by 6.4% in the 1st quarter. Pinnacle Wealth Management Advisory Group LLC now owns 5,965 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock worth $791,000 after purchasing an additional 357 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Foundations Investment Advisors LLC grew its position in Abbott Laboratories by 10.7% in the 1st quarter. Foundations Investment Advisors LLC now owns 10,464 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock worth $1,388,000 after purchasing an additional 1,013 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 75.18% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have issued reports on ABT shares. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price target on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $135.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 17th. Raymond James Financial decreased their price target on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $142.00 to $141.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, July 18th. BTIG Research decreased their price target on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $148.00 to $145.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, July 18th. Barclays raised their price target on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $158.00 to $159.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 17th. Finally, Leerink Partners began coverage on shares of Abbott Laboratories in a research report on Monday, June 16th. They set a “market perform” rating and a $143.00 target price on the stock. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $144.47.

Abbott Laboratories Price Performance

Shares of Abbott Laboratories stock opened at $127.96 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.78, a quick ratio of 1.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26. The stock has a market capitalization of $222.62 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.03, a P/E/G ratio of 2.40 and a beta of 0.73. Abbott Laboratories has a 1-year low of $102.78 and a 1-year high of $141.23. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $132.06 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $130.18.

Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 17th. The healthcare product maker reported $1.26 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $1.26. The firm had revenue of $11.14 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $11.01 billion. Abbott Laboratories had a net margin of 32.43% and a return on equity of 18.83%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 7.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.14 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts predict that Abbott Laboratories will post 5.14 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Abbott Laboratories Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, July 15th will be given a dividend of $0.59 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, July 15th. This represents a $2.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.84%. Abbott Laboratories’s payout ratio is 29.57%.

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.