Abbott Laboratories (NYSE: ABT)‘s stock had its “hold” rating reiterated by investment analysts at TheStreet in a note issued to investors on Monday.
The analysts wrote, “Abbott Laboratories (ABT) has been reiterated by TheStreet Ratings as a hold with a ratings score of C . The company’s strengths can be seen in multiple areas, such as its revenue growth, notable return on equity and reasonable valuation levels. However, as a counter to these strengths, we also find weaknesses including unimpressive growth in net income, a generally disappointing performance in the stock itself and feeble growth in the company’s earnings per share.”
Shares of Abbott Laboratories traded up 0.13% during mid-day trading on Monday, hitting $33.645. Abbott Laboratories has a 52 week low of $26.764 and a 52 week high of $35.29. The stock’s 50-day moving average is currently $33.75. The company has a market cap of $52.845 billion and a P/E ratio of 9.03.
Abbott Laboratories last released its earnings data on Wednesday, January 23rd. The company reported $1.51 EPS for the quarter, beating the Thomson Reuters consensus estimate of $1.50 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $10.80 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $10.58 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $1.45 earnings per share. Abbott Laboratories’s revenue was up 4.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Abbott Laboratories has set its FY13 guidance at $1.98-2.04 EPS. Analysts expect that Abbott Laboratories will post $2.01 EPS for the current fiscal year.
A number of other firms have also recently commented on ABT. Analysts at Barclays Capital reiterated an “equal weight” rating on shares of Abbott Laboratories in a research note to investors on Friday, February 22nd. They now have a $35.00 price target on the stock. Separately, analysts at JPMorgan Chase reiterated a “neutral” rating on shares of Abbott Laboratories in a research note to investors on Tuesday, February 19th. They now have a $34.00 price target on the stock. Finally, analysts at Jefferies Group reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Abbott Laboratories in a research note to investors on Friday, February 15th. They now have a $40.00 price target on the stock.
Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, fifteen have given a hold rating, and one has given a sell rating to the company. The company currently has an average rating of “overweight” and a consensus target price of $35.33.
The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which is scheduled for Wednesday, May 15th. Investors of record on Monday, April 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.14 per share. This represents a $0.56 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.67%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 11th.
Abbott Laboratories (Abbott) is engaged in the discovery, development, manufacture, and sale of a range of health care products.
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