Sanford C. Bernstein Issues Pessimistic Forecast for Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) Stock Price

Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) had its price target dropped by investment analysts at Sanford C. Bernstein from $154.00 to $125.00 in a research note issued to investors on Friday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has an “outperform” rating on the healthcare product maker’s stock. Sanford C. Bernstein’s target price would suggest a potential upside of 16.32% from the company’s current price.

Several other equities analysts have also recently issued reports on ABT. Mizuho lifted their price objective on Abbott Laboratories from $135.00 to $140.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 14th. BTIG Research cut their price objective on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $145.00 to $140.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday. Royal Bank Of Canada decreased their price target on Abbott Laboratories from $147.00 to $135.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Abbott Laboratories in a report on Monday, December 29th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on Abbott Laboratories from $142.00 to $146.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, October 16th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have issued a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $140.79.

Abbott Laboratories Stock Down 1.1%

Shares of ABT opened at $107.46 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $186.86 billion, a PE ratio of 28.89, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.78 and a beta of 0.72. The company has a quick ratio of 1.24, a current ratio of 1.70 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $124.77 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $128.33. Abbott Laboratories has a 52-week low of $105.78 and a 52-week high of $141.23.

Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 22nd. The healthcare product maker reported $1.50 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $1.50. Abbott Laboratories had a return on equity of 17.94% and a net margin of 14.72%.The company had revenue of $11.46 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $11.80 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.34 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Abbott Laboratories has set its Q1 2026 guidance at 1.120-1.180 EPS and its FY 2026 guidance at 5.550-5.800 EPS. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Abbott Laboratories will post 5.14 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Trading of Abbott Laboratories

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in ABT. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Abbott Laboratories during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $3,026,180,000. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Abbott Laboratories by 13,347.0% during the 2nd quarter. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 6,056,934 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock valued at $823,804,000 after acquiring an additional 6,011,891 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. grew its position in Abbott Laboratories by 51.0% during the 3rd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 13,951,907 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock worth $1,868,718,000 after purchasing an additional 4,713,135 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Abbott Laboratories by 1.8% during the second quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 172,800,851 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock worth $23,502,644,000 after purchasing an additional 2,977,715 shares during the period. Finally, First Trust Advisors LP grew its stake in Abbott Laboratories by 180.7% in the second quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 3,063,443 shares of the healthcare product maker’s stock valued at $416,659,000 after purchasing an additional 1,972,097 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 75.18% of the company’s stock.

Abbott Laboratories News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Abbott Laboratories this week:

• Positive Sentiment: MedTech and pharma strength, and EPS resilience — Abbott reported adjusted Q4 EPS growth (company highlighted margin improvements) and strong MedTech (+~12%) and Established Pharma (+~9%) performance that partly offset Nutrition weakness; management still projects FY‑2026 adjusted EPS growth. Press Release
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts keep buy/outperform stance despite cuts — several major firms trimmed price targets after the print but largely maintained buy/overweight ratings, signaling conviction in the longer‑term story even as near‑term expectations were tempered. Analyst Reaction
• Positive Sentiment: Some commentators view the pullback as a buying opportunity — market commentators highlight ABT’s dividend history, cash flow and buyback capacity, suggesting the drop may create an attractive entry for long‑term investors. MarketBeat: Pullback Analysis
• Neutral Sentiment: Full earnings call and transcripts available — investors can review management commentary and segment detail in the Q4 earnings call transcript for color on nutrition, diagnostics and Exact/other strategic items. Earnings Transcript
• Neutral Sentiment: Dividend/valuation commentary circulates — value and dividend‑focused outlets are flagging ABT as attractively valued after the pullback; this is background context rather than a near‑term catalyst. Zacks: Value Take
• Negative Sentiment: Revenue miss driven by Nutrition and Diagnostics — Q4 revenue (~$11.5B) fell short of consensus, with Nutrition down sharply (~8–9%) and Diagnostics weak, sparking the initial selloff. Reuters: Revenue Miss
• Negative Sentiment: Guidance slightly below Street — Abbott set Q1 EPS and FY‑2026 EPS ranges that sit near or a touch below consensus, increasing near‑term revenue/growth concerns. Guidance Details
• Negative Sentiment: Multiple price‑target cuts — a raft of firms (Citigroup, Goldman, Raymond James, Sanford Bernstein, Oppenheimer, RBC, etc.) trimmed targets, which can amplify selling pressure even if ratings remain constructive. Benzinga: PT Cuts
• Negative Sentiment: Options and hedging activity spiked — an unusual surge in put buying suggests traders are positioning for further near‑term downside (heightened bearish sentiment).
• Negative Sentiment: Regulatory scrutiny in India — reports of an investigation into alleged misuse of a codeine‑based cough syrup (Abbott Healthcare) add an extra headline risk in emerging markets. Reuters: India Scrutiny

Abbott Laboratories Company Profile

Abbott Laboratories is a global healthcare company headquartered in Abbott Park, Illinois, that develops, manufactures and markets a broad portfolio of medical products and services. Founded in 1888, Abbott operates through multiple business areas that focus on diagnostics, medical devices, nutritionals and established pharmaceuticals. The company supplies hospitals, clinics, laboratories, retailers and direct-to-consumer channels with products intended to diagnose, treat and manage a wide range of health conditions.

In diagnostics, Abbott provides laboratory and point-of-care testing platforms and assays used to detect infectious diseases, chronic conditions and biomarkers; its Alinity family of instruments and rapid-test solutions are examples of this capability.