Abbott (ABT) Stock Drops Despite Market Gains: Important Facts to Note

Abbott (ABT) closed the latest trading day at $132.96, indicating a -0.56% change from the previous session's end. This change lagged the S&P 500's daily gain of 0.01%. At the same time, the Dow lost 0.22%, and the tech-heavy Nasdaq gained 0.32%.Prior to today's trading, shares of the maker of infant formula, medical devices and drugs had gained 0.49% over the past month. This has outpaced the Medical sector's loss of 2.72% and lagged the S&P 500's gain of 5.2% in that time.Analysts and investors alike will be keeping a close eye on the performance of Abbott in its upcoming earnings disclosure. The company is forecasted to report an EPS of $1.25, showcasing a 9.65% upward movement from the corresponding quarter of the prior year. Meanwhile, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for revenue is projecting net sales of $11.04 billion, up 6.38% from the year-ago period.For the annual period, the Zacks Consensus Estimates anticipate earnings of $5.16 per share and a revenue of $44.66 billion, signifying shifts of +10.49% and +6.47%, respectively, from the last year.Investors might also notice recent changes to analyst estimates for Abbott. Such recent modifications usually signify the changing landscape of near-term business trends. Consequently, upward revisions in estimates express analysts' positivity towards the company's business operations and its ability to generate profits.Our research demonstrates that these adjustments in estimates directly associate with imminent stock price performance. We developed the Zacks Rank to capitalize on this phenomenon. Our system takes these estimate changes into account and delivers a clear, actionable rating model.The Zacks Rank system, which ranges from #1 (Strong Buy) to #5 (Strong Sell), has an impressive outside-audited track record of outperformance, with #1 stocks generating an average annual return of +25% since 1988. Over the last 30 days, the Zacks Consensus EPS estimate has witnessed an unchanged state. Abbott presently features a Zacks Rank of #3 (Hold).Valuation is also important, so investors should note that Abbott has a Forward P/E ratio of 25.93 right now. This expresses a premium compared to the average Forward P/E of 18.18 of its industry.One should further note that ABT currently holds a PEG ratio of 2.52. The PEG ratio is akin to the commonly utilized P/E ratio, but this measure also incorporates the company's anticipated earnings growth rate. Medical - Products stocks are, on average, holding a PEG ratio of 2.25 based on yesterday's closing prices.The Medical - Products industry is part of the Medical sector. Currently, this industry holds a Zacks Industry Rank of 132, positioning it in the bottom 47% of all 250+ industries.The Zacks Industry Rank is ordered from best to worst in terms of the average Zacks Rank of the individual companies within each of these sectors. Our research shows that the top 50% rated industries outperform the bottom half by a factor of 2 to 1.Keep in mind to rely on Zacks.com to watch all these stock-impacting metrics, and more, in the succeeding trading sessions.Don’t Miss Out on These Stocks Before you make your next investing move, we have a free report that highlights the %%CTA_TEXT%% to buy.Our experts at Zacks Investment Research hand-selected these stocks for their eye-opening growth projections.Since 1988, our stock picks have more than doubled the S&P 500 with an average gain of +23.89% per year using the Zacks Rank stock-rating system.Register now to see the %%CTA_TEXT%%.7 best stocksWant the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report Abbott Laboratories (ABT): Free Stock Analysis ReportThis article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).Zacks Investment ResearchWeiter zum vollständigen Artikel bei Zacks Weiter zum vollständigen Artikel bei Zacks