Abbott price target lowered to $115 from $135 at Piper Sandler

Piper Sandler lowered the firm’s price target on Abbott (ABT) to $115 from $135 and keeps an Overweight rating on the shares. The firm notes the company reported Q1 results that missed on the topline on an organic growth basis and adjusted EPS came in 1c better than the Street models. The biggest disappointment came from Medtech, and more specifically in diabetes where growth was soft-driven by a couple of items. While Piper acknowledges it is “frustrated by the mixed results” and specifically the diabetes number, which adds credence to the bear thesis, it still views Abbott as a durable 7% top-line grower that should grow adjusted EPS double digits after working through the Exact Sciences (EXAS) deal.