The bull market continues; markets quickly dusted off the 5% correction in April and soared to new highs. With too much cash on the sidelines, every shallow correction has become a buying opportunity. Blue-chip stocks are one way to play this positive momentum.From a historical perspective, the markets are in great shape for continued gains. In the first 100 trading days of 2024, the S&P 500 has had about a 10% gain. JPMorgan Wealth Management noted that since 1950, that has meant a stronger second half, wi ...

Abbott (ABT) closed at $103.95 in the latest trading session, marking a -0.27% move from the prior day. The stock trailed the S&P 500, which registered a daily gain of 0.7%. At the same time, the Dow added 0.01%, and the tech-heavy Nasdaq gained 1.1%.Shares of the maker of infant formula, medical devices and drugs witnessed a loss of 2.46% over the previous month, trailing the performance of the Medical sector with its gain of 3.27% and the S&P 500's gain of 4.03%.Analysts and investors alike will be keepin ...

Abbott Laboratories (ABT) is well-poised to grow in the coming quarters, backed by its Nutrition business, which continues to recover shares and grow its Adult business. Within Diabetes care, Libre’s solid sales trajectory is encouraging and should continue to sustain with several new growth opportunities. Strong potential in the Diagnostics space is highly promising as well.However, the company faces challenges from lower demand for COVID-19 testing, which is hurting growth, as well as adverse currency mov ...

When deciding whether to buy, sell, or hold a stock, investors often rely on analyst recommendations. Media reports about rating changes by these brokerage-firm-employed (or sell-side) analysts often influence a stock's price, but are they really important?Before we discuss the reliability of brokerage recommendations and how to use them to your advantage, let's see what these Wall Street heavyweights think about Abbott (ABT) .Abbott currently has an average brokerage recommendation (ABR) of 1.53, on a scal ...

PALM BEACH, Fla., May 21, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- FN Media Group News Commentary - The sports nutrition market is experiencing significant growth due to the evolving preferences of consumers seeking healthier and tailored nutritional options and for maintaining muscle growth during weight loss. The sports nutrition market is experiencing robust growth due to increasing consumer awareness about the importance of fitness and healthy lifestyles. Industry players are emphasizing innovation in product developme ...

A team of scientists work in a laboratory. AzmanL/E+ via Getty Images For my money, the name of the game in dividend growth investing is to buy best-of-breed companies operating in industries with favorable growth tailwinds. That's because this can help a company deliver the sales and profit growth that is necessary to support a rising payout to shareholders. Well, few growth trends are as powerful as healthcare. As medical treatments advance, the world ages, and grows in population/wealth, the demand cur ...

These two healthcare stocks are well-known for their top-tier dividend programs.Dividend stocks tend to struggle in high-interest-rate environments. The core reason is investors have an abundance of low-risk, high-yield income options when interest rates spike.Conversely, fund managers have historically pivoted to top-tier dividend stocks when interest rates fall. The logic behind this trend is that dividend stocks ought to deliver superior returns to risk-free assets like U.S. T-bills in low-rate environme ...

JP Morgan Has 5 Blue Chip Passive Income Stocks as Top Picks for May Chris Hondros / Getty Images News via Getty Images 24/7 InsightsAI stocks are facing headwinds and sky high valuations are cooling downJ.P. Morgan’s top picks are in May are stable, established brands2 legendary, high-yield dividend stocks Wall Street loves (free access)The artificial intelligence rally over the past year and a half, led by the so-called Magnificent Seven, has been remarkable if you owned those stocks. However, most of t ...

Often overlooked, especially in times of AI revolution, the healthcare market is always a safe bet for investors, as it is a multiple trillion, highly innovative industry with no drawbacks like lack of demand per se.Healthcare stocks, especially well-known ones, are no-brainer investments for traders. Their potential is high, and over the long term, their returns are multiplefold.With this in mind, Finbold picked out three healthcare stocks for investors to purchase and hold forever. Johnson & Johnson (NYSE ...

Sales Performance - Total net sales increased by 5.1% excluding foreign exchange impact, driven by growth in Medical Devices and Established Pharmaceuticals, partially offset by a decline in COVID-19 testing sales[90] - COVID-19 testing-related sales totaled $204 million in Q1 2024, down from $730 million in Q1 2023[90] - Medical Devices sales increased by 15.4% excluding foreign exchange, led by double-digit growth in Diabetes Care, Electrophysiology, Vascular, Structural Heart, and Neuromodulation[98] - FreeStyle Libre sales reached $1.5 billion in Q1 2024, a 23.3% increase excluding foreign exchange[98] - Diagnostic Products sales decreased by 15.5% excluding foreign exchange, primarily due to lower demand for COVID-19 tests[96] - Rapid Diagnostics sales declined by 38.7% excluding foreign exchange, driven by reduced COVID-19 testing demand[96] - Nutritional Products sales increased by 7.7% excluding foreign exchange, with U.S. Pediatric Nutritionals up 12.0%[96] - Core Laboratory Diagnostics sales grew by 5.9% excluding foreign exchange, supported by the Alinity testing platform[97] Expenses and Investments - R&D expenses increased by $30 million (4.5%) in Q1 2024 compared to the prior year[100] - SG&A expenses increased by $197 million (7.1%) in Q1 2024, driven by higher spending to support business growth[101] - Abbott completed the acquisition of CSI for $851 million, adding complementary technologies to its vascular device offerings[113] - The final allocation of the CSI acquisition included $305 million in non-deductible developed technology intangible assets and $369 million in non-deductible goodwill[114] Financial Position and Cash Flow - Abbott's cash and cash equivalents decreased from $6.9 billion at December 31, 2023 to $6.3 billion at March 31, 2024, primarily due to dividend payments and capital expenditures[109] - Net cash from operating activities for the first three months of 2024 totaled approximately $1.0 billion, a decrease of $118 million from the prior year[110] - Abbott's working capital decreased from $8.8 billion at December 31, 2023 to $8.4 billion at March 31, 2024, primarily due to a decrease in cash and cash equivalents and an increase in the current portion of long-term debt[109] - Abbott declared a quarterly dividend of $0.55 per share in Q1 2024, representing a 7.8% increase over the $0.51 per share dividend declared in Q1 2023[111] - Abbott has unused lines of credit that provide the ability to borrow up to $5 billion on an unsecured basis[111] Tax and Regulatory Matters - Abbott received a Statutory Notice of Deficiency (SNOD) from the IRS for the 2019 Federal tax year in the amount of $417 million, primarily related to income reallocation between U.S. entities and foreign affiliates[106] - The OECD's Pillar 2 proposal, which includes a 15% minimum tax on multinational corporations' earnings, may have a material impact on Abbott's financial statements in the future[108] Credit Ratings - Abbott's long-term debt rating was AA- by S&P Global Ratings and Aa3 by Moody's Investors Service as of March 31, 2024[110]