Some might look at Abbott Laboratories' (NYSE: ABT) year-to-date gain of 18% and rightly point out that it's well below the performance for the S&P 500 index. Others might note that Abbott has absolutely trounced the S&P over the past three years, soaring over 120% while the broader index is up a little over 40%.
The main thing for investors to know, however, is that how well Abbott has performed in the past -- whether so far in 2019 or in recent years -- doesn't matter when trying to determine how the stock will do in the future. Is Abbott Labs stock a buy now? Here's how the healthcare giant grades in three key areas important to investors.
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