Abbott Leaps on Recent Stock Fluctuations

Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) CEO Robert Ford cited his company’s latest quarterly report, telling reporters that Wall Street’s reaction to the results was extreme.“I think this is a little bit of an overreaction. Of course, we are all over this,” Ford said. “We’re focused on this, but the fundamentals of the entire rest of the company are pretty much intact, and this is just really a point in time that we have to get through.”While Abbott posted a top and bottom line beat for the second quarter, investors were disappointed that the company tightened its full-year earnings guidance. Shares were down more than 8% by close. Abbott is known for a variety of products and services in the health-care field, including medical devices, diagnostics, nutritional products and generic pharmaceuticals. The company is currently facing a number of lawsuits related to its specialized infant formula, but it managed a major win in court late last year.According to Ford, Abbott’s diagnostics business in China was not as strong as expected. But he emphasized that the company saw improvement in the segment “everywhere else except China,” pointing to growth in the U.S., Europe and Latin America.ABT shares began the week’s last session up $3.80, or 3.2%, to $124.31.