Shares of Abbott Laboratories, a leading maker of medical diagnostic systems and nutritional supplements, have performed well during the pandemic. And on Wednesday, Abbott stock earned a lift to its Relative Strength (RS) Rating, to 73, up 10 points from 63 the day before.
Abbott Stock On Right Track
Having a 73 RS Rating means that Abbott stock has performed in the top 27% of all stocks, regardless of industry. It's a strong uptick for the stock but it has work to do to get into the elite stocks category. Research has shown that stocks that go on to make the biggest gains tend to have an RS Rating of over 80 in the early stages of their moves. See if Abbott Laboratories can continue to show renewed price strength and clear that threshold.
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Abbott stock earns the No. 4 rank among its peers in the Medical-Diversified industry group. Eli Lilly and AstraZeneca are also among the group's highest-rated stocks.
Among its other ratings, Abbott Laboratories has an outstanding 88 EPS Rating. Abbott stock also has a 92 Composite Rating, placing it in the top 8% for a group of five key ratings, including EPS. Its C+ Accumulation/Distribution Rating indicates that institutional investors are buying more of its shares than selling.
Earnings for Abbott Laboratories grew 31% last quarter to $1.73 per share. Revenue rose 14% year over year to $11.9 billion, both good growth rates for a company with nearly $48 billion a year run rate. Abbott stock is building a consolidation with a 142.70 buy point. See if it can clear the breakout price in heavy volume. Abbott stock has soared from an intraday low 36 a share in January 2016 to a 115.08 close Wednesday, down 2% for the day.
When looking for the best stocks to buy and watch, one factor to watch closely is relative price strength.
IBD's unique Relative Strength Rating identifies price performance with a 1 (worst) to 99 (best) score. The rating shows how a stock's price movement over the last 52 weeks holds up against all the other stocks in our database.
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