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How to buy Abbott Laboratories (ABT) stock

Q: Is Abbott Laboratories stock overvalued?

There is no perfect way to value a stock. You can use financial metrics like the P/E ratio to compare share prices among Abbott Laboratories and its competitors, where a higher ratio indicates that a stock is more expensive. But lots of different factors play into Abbott laboratories’ share price and the ‘right’ valuation is often a matter of opinion.

Q: Do I have to pay capital gains tax on any profits I make?

It depends on where you live but you do normally have to pay capital gains tax any time you make money from investing in Abbott Laboratories. Capital gains tax is often charged at 10-15% of your profit but there are ways to limit the amount you have to pay, by using tax-friendly stock market investment vehicles and writing off losses. Speak to an accountant or a tax professional and check the tax laws where you live to find out more.

Q: What is Abbott Laboratories’ ticker symbol?

Abbott laboratories’ ticker symbol is NYSE:ABT. A ticker symbol, or stock code, is a publicly traded company’s unique identifier so that you can find them on stock exchanges.

Q: Does Abbott Laboratories pay dividends?

Yes, Abbott Laboratories pays a cash dividend. Dividend payments are made on a per share basis, so the more shares you own the more you receive in dividends. Cash dividends are normally paid directly into your trading account and some brokerage services allow you to reinvest dividends automatically.

Q: Is Abbott Laboratories ESG friendly?

Abbott Labs is a medium risk ESG stock, according to SustainAnalytics. This ranks them about in the middle of all healthcare stocks.

Use our step-by-step guide to learn how to buy ABT stock and compare the best Abbott Laboratories trading platforms.

By: &

Updated: Jul 6, 2023

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A big part of learning how to buy Abbott Laboratories stocks is finding the best place to make your investment. Abbott Laboratories stocks are available to invest in through an online stock broker, and it usually takes just a few minutes to buy shares in Abbott Laboratories when following our step by step guide.

Where to buy Abbott Laboratories stock?

The best stock trading platform to use to buy Abbott Laboratories stock is eToro .

Based on our research, we’ve ranked the top three brokers where you can buy Abbott Laboratories shares, according to how easy they are to use, how low their fees are, their safety and security rating, and average customer reviews.

How to buy stock in Abbott Laboratories in 3 simple steps

Buying Abbott Laboratories stock is quick and easy, all you need is an internet connection and a copy of your photo ID. Here’s how to do it.

Step 1. Sign up to Start Trading

eToro is the best stock trading platform for beginners. Fill in your details to set up a brokerage account and attach a copy of your ID to verify it.

Step 2. Make a deposit

Transfer money to your new account with your credit or debit card, a bank transfer, or an alternative payment method, like PayPal. The minimum deposit is £10.

Step 3. Buy Abbott Laboratories shares

Search for Abbott Laboratories using the ticker, ABT. Click the ‘trade’ button and enter the details of your investment, such as how many shares you want to buy or how much you want to spend. Hit ‘trade now’ to invest in Abbott Laboratories and complete your purchase.

It’s as easy as that! You can buy Abbott Laboratories shares in just 10-15 minutes and now you’re a Abbott Laboratories shareholder.

Compare the best platforms to buy Abbott Laboratories stock

1. eToro. Best for beginners, copy-trading & demo-account

Visit site

2900

No. assets

$10

Minimum deposit

Stocks

Platform type

Pros & Cons

Great for beginners, simple to set up and get started Zero commission stock trading Popular ‘CopyTrader’ function lets you follow top traders Excellent customer service, with live chat support provided Over 2,000 CFDs available to trade

Comparatively high fees for withdrawals and account inactivity Does not integrate with the MetaTrader platform High spreads on some assets

Overview

We love eToro because you can trade more than 3,000 stocks, commission free. When you buy stocks on eToro, you’re buying the underlying asset, which means you can earn dividends. Or you can trade fractional shares, which means you can invest in even the most expensive stock from just $10.

As well as being a broker that offers lots of investor protection, eToro offers a very social trading experience. You can easily see what’s trending on the stock market every day, browse the latest analyst opinion about every one of those stocks, and copy other people’s trade suggestions from your desktop or the eToro app.

The fees: Stock and ETF trades are commission free. Stock CFDs are charged a 0.15% spread and overnight fees can apply. You can deposit money for free but you have to pay $5 per withdrawal, and there’s a minimum withdrawal of $30. A $10 per month activity fee is charged if you don’t log in for a year.

Visit eToro eToro Review

77% of retail CFD accounts lose money.

2. Public. Best for sharing beginner trading ideas

Visit site

...

No. assets

...

Minimum deposit

Stocks

Platform type

Pros & Cons

Commission free stock and ETF investing Share and compare your portfolio on a social trading platform Trade crypto, fractional shares, and alternative investments

You can't trade on margin or use leverage No forex, options, funds, metals, or bonds

Overview

We love Public because it’s a social platform where you can share trading tips and get ideas from other people. Public offers 9,000+ financial instruments, including cryptocurrencies and stocks from around the world.

Alongside a community of other investors all sharing their ideas, Public offers real time news and information so that you can see the full picture before you invest. And the assets don’t just include your run-of-the-mill assets; you can make alternative investments in things like handbags and comic books as well.

The fees: There are no fees for investing in stocks during regular trading hours in the US – 9.30am-4pm EST. There is a $2.99 fee for trades outside of regular hours.

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Fundamental analysis of Abbott Laboratories shares

What is Abbott Laboratories’ total worth?

Abbott laboratories’ total net worth is $189.21 billion. This is its total market capitalisation, calculated by multiplying the number of shares outstanding on a stock exchange by the current share price.

The current Abbott Laboratories stock price today is $108.52, which is 22.89% below its all time high of $140.74, which it reached on 31 December 2021.

Overall, ABT is up 90.62% over the last five years. The ABT share price is down 20.26% in 2023 with a 52 week high of $142.60 and a 52 week low of $93.25.

What is Abbott Laboratories’ EPS?

Abbott laboratories’ EPS is $1.15. EPS stands for earnings per share and is calculated by dividing Abbott laboratories’ net profit by the number of shares outstanding. It gives you an idea of how valuable a company is.

What is the Abbott Laboratories P/E ratio?

Abbott laboratories’ P/E ratio is 24.38. The P/E, or price to earnings ratio, tells you how much you would have to pay per share for $1 of Abbott laboratories’ earnings.

It is calculated by dividing the share price by the earnings per share. You can use Abbott laboratories’ earnings estimates to predict its future (or forward) P/E and set a target price you think the stock can reach.

What is Abbott Laboratories’ dividend yield?

Abbott laboratories’ dividend yield is 1.88%. The dividend yield tells you how much of Abbott laboratories’ share price it gives back to shareholders in dividend payments every year.

Is Abbott Laboratories stock a buy or sell?

The indicator below shows you live technical ratings for Abbott Laboratories stock on time frames from one minute to one month.

It tracks a selection of key technical indicators on live market data, including moving averages, relative strength index (RSI), oscillators, and momentum.

This indicator should be used when you research Abbott Laboratories to help you decide whether to buy Abbott Laboratories shares. Past performance is no guarantee of future results. It is not investment advice or a recommendation from Invezz to buy this stock.

Is Abbott Laboratories a good investment for me?

The right answer is different for each person, so here is some information to help you decide whether to buy stocks in Abbott Laboratories.

Abbott Laboratories is a Dividend King. A Dividend King is a company that has paid out a cash dividend to shareholders every year for the past half-century. You can likely expect consistent dividends for a long time to come.
The company is more than 130 years old. Abbott has weathered all sorts of economic environments to survive and thrive over a long period of time. Its age along with 50+ years of dividends makes it a reliable, stable stock. It’s ideal for long term investors saving for retirement.
Despite its age, Abbott Laboratories is innovative. Being successful in healthcare means constantly finding new products to market. Abbott Laboratories spends a lot on R&D (research and development) and has had notable successes in recent years, like with a diabetes treatment to monitor glucose and coronavirus detection kits.
Revenue has increased by two-thirds in the last five years. In 2017, Abbott Labs’ annual revenue stood at around $27 billion. In 2022 it was more than $43 billion.
Abbott has a high revenue floor thanks to its existing products. Alongside researching new treatments, the company has branded products that bring in a steady revenue stream. It sells baby formula and surgical tools. While the latter was affected by supply chain issues during lockdown, vital revenue from its medical devices segment should pick up again.
It has diversified revenue streams. Thanks to a mix of long term branded products, medical devices, and new treatments, Abbott isn’t overly reliant on one business segment. This puts it in a great place to deal with a drop off in any one area and is one reason why it’s been so successful for so long.

It’s always a good idea to think about any potential risks there might be as well. Use this summary of Abbott laboratories’ pros and cons before you make a final decision on whether to buy Abbott Laboratories stock.

Pros

A Dividend King that has paid dividends for 50+ years
An established company with stable and diversified revenue
Regularly develops new products by investing heavily in R&D

Cons

Unlikely to see dramatic short term price gains
Healthcare stocks rely on continuing to develop new products

Are there other ways to buy shares in Abbott Laboratories?

Yes, you can invest in Abbott Laboratories stock in a few different ways. One option is to buy stock in Abbott Laboratories directly through an investment platform as laid out above, while another popular choice is to invest in a fund.

Mutual funds provide instant diversification to your investment portfolio by investing in lots of companies at once. You can invest in a NYSE index fund to get exposure to Abbott Laboratories, or choose a pharmaceuticals ETF.

Another option is to use a social copy trading platform, like eToro . Find a trader who you like and copy their Abbott Laboratories trades directly to your own account.

This can be a good investment strategy for beginners and a way to learn how to buy Abbott Laboratories shares from someone with more experience.

What are the fees for investing in Abbott Laboratories stock?

It depends on the stock broker. Some platforms charge a flat fee per trade, others charge a commission as a percentage of the total trade value each time you buy Abbott Laboratories stocks.

Consider that there may be other costs to trading too. Other fees can include deposit and withdrawal fees, or inactivity fees if you don’t use your account for three months or more.

These are the trading platforms that charge the lowest fees for buying stocks in Abbott Laboratories.

Trading platform	Trading fees
eToro	$0
Skilling	$0
Capital.com	$0
Degiro	$0 (US) / £1.75 (UK)
AvaTrade	0.13% commission

How to sell Abbott Laboratories stock

When you decide the time is right to sell and lock in some profit (or cut your losses), log into your broker account and navigate to your portfolio.

From there, find your Abbott Laboratories stock and you’ll see a ‘sell’ option next to it. Click that to set the details of the trade (you don’t have to sell all your stocks at once) and sell back to cash.

Should I buy Abbott Laboratories stock now?

It’s your investing goals and style that define whether now is a good time to buy. The current Abbott Laboratories stock price plays into it but ultimately it depends on your investment horizons.

If you’re a short term trader: the goal is to make money by buying and selling stocks regularly to secure a profit or avoid a loss. That can mean trading hourly, daily, or weekly but the focus is always on the near future. Traders learn how to buy stocks in Abbott Laboratories based on short term technical analysis and don’t hold shares for a long time, so any time can be a good time to buy ABT.

If you’re a long term investor: you’re more interested in long term price appreciation than whether a stock is up or down on any given day. The important thing is finding a stock with a strong foundation where you think the share price will be up over a period of months or years. If you think Abbott laboratories’ fundamentals are solid then the best time to invest in Abbott Laboratories stock is after a dip or a pullback in price.

Most new traders sit somewhere between these two positions. You don’t want to actively trade Abbott Laboratories stock all hours of the day but you don’t want to wait years for a return either.

Either way, following ABT price news and analysis will help you decide when to dip your toe into the market.

Jim Cramer: buy Abbott stock after its Q1 earnings report

Abbott Laboratories (NYSE: ABT) is up 8.0% this morning after reporting strong results for its fiscal Q1 despite a significant slowdown in sales of COVID-19 tests. Jim Cramer’s view on Abbott stock The health care company continues to see $4.30 a share to $4.50 a share of earnings this year on

Is Abbott Laboratories stock a ‘buy’ after market-beating Q2 results?

Abbott Laboratories (NYSE: ABT) down more than 20% for the year is an opportunity to buy a quality name at a deep discount, says Brenda Vingiello. She’s the Chief Investment Officer at Sand Hill Global Advisors. Vingiello’s remarks on CNBC’s ‘Halftime Report’ A day earl

Abbot tops first-quarter EPS by $0.26

Abbot (NYSE: ABT) records a first-quarter EPS of $1.73, beating analyst estimates of $1.47 by 25 cents. The company recorded a first-quarter revenue of about $11.9 billion, which also topped the $11.02 billon consensus estimate. Abbot maintains a full-year 2022 EPS financial guidance of about$4

FAQs

Is Abbott Laboratories stock overvalued?

Do I have to pay capital gains tax on any profits I make?

What is Abbott Laboratories’ ticker symbol?

Does Abbott Laboratories pay dividends?

Is Abbott Laboratories ESG friendly?

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Sources & references

Risk disclaimer

Prash Raval

Financial Writer

When not researching stocks or trading, Prash can be found either on the golf course, walking his dog or teaching his son how to kick a... read more.

James Knight

Editor of Education

James is a lead content editor for Invezz. He's an avid trader and golfer, who spends an inordinate amount of time watching Leicester City and the... read more.