Sigma Investment Counselors Inc. Sells 225 Shares of Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT)

Sigma Investment Counselors Inc. cut its holdings in Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) by 6.5% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 3,222 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock after selling 225 shares during the quarter. Sigma Investment Counselors Inc.’s holdings in Abbott Laboratories were worth $335,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Unique Wealth Strategies LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Abbott Laboratories during the second quarter worth $28,000. Signature Resources Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in Abbott Laboratories during the fourth quarter worth $29,000. Transcendent Capital Group LLC bought a new position in shares of Abbott Laboratories in the 4th quarter valued at about $29,000. Richardson Financial Services Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Abbott Laboratories during the 4th quarter worth about $29,000. Finally, Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Abbott Laboratories in the 1st quarter valued at about $30,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.18% of the company’s stock.

Abbott Laboratories Price Performance

NYSE ABT traded up $0.59 on Friday, hitting $112.69. 4,511,637 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 5,979,149. Abbott Laboratories has a 52 week low of $89.67 and a 52 week high of $121.64. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $106.15 and a 200-day moving average of $108.71. The company has a current ratio of 1.68, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33. The stock has a market cap of $196.04 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.11, a P/E/G ratio of 2.74 and a beta of 0.72.

Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, July 18th. The healthcare product maker reported $1.14 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.10 by $0.04. Abbott Laboratories had a return on equity of 20.18% and a net margin of 13.65%. The firm had revenue of $10.38 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $10.37 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.08 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 4.0% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts expect that Abbott Laboratories will post 4.66 earnings per share for the current year.

Abbott Laboratories Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 15th. Investors of record on Monday, July 15th were issued a dividend of $0.55 per share. This represents a $2.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.95%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, July 15th. Abbott Laboratories’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 68.54%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Citigroup raised their price objective on Abbott Laboratories from $119.00 to $127.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday. Edward Jones downgraded Abbott Laboratories from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 30th. Barclays upped their price target on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $140.00 to $143.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, July 29th. Evercore ISI cut their price objective on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $125.00 to $120.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, July 2nd. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $125.00 price target on shares of Abbott Laboratories in a research report on Tuesday, June 4th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $121.80.

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.