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Health care products maker Abbott Laboratories ( ABT ) on Tuesday caught some continued bullish support from analysts at Jefferies & Co.

The firm said that after an initial review, ABT's planned spin-off of its pharmaceuticals unit, to be named AbbVie, supports its $76 sum-of-the-parts valuation. That price target suggests a 26% upside to the stock's Monday closing price of $60.22.

A Jefferies analyst commented, "Abbott filed its initial draft of the Form-10 for its spin-off of AbbVie yesterday. We have provided a 'first-blush' analysis of the Income Statement for pro forma AbbVie with the adjustments required to make it comparable to Abbott's Non-GAAP earnings. This analysis combined with our yield/multiple sum-of-the-parts valuation approach continues to imply a Price Target of circa $76." Accordingly, the firm also maintained its "Buy" rating on the stock.

Abbott Labs shares were unchanged in premarket trading Tuesday.

The Bottom Line
We have been recommending shares of Abbott Labs ( ABT ) since Feb.18, 2011, when the stock was trading at $46.32. The company has a 3.39% dividend yield, based on last night's closing stock price of $60.22.

Abbott Laboratories ( ABT ) is a "Recommended" dividend stock, holding a Dividend.com DARS™ Rating of 3.5 out of 5 stars.

Be sure to visit our complete recommended list of the Best Dividend Stocks , as well as a detailed explanation of our ratings system here .

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