AbbVie (NYSE:ABBV) Given New $240.00 Price Target at BMO Capital Markets

Key Points

• BMO Capital Markets has increased AbbVie's price target from $215.00 to $240.00, indicating a potential upside of 9.05% from its current price.
• Several firms have upgraded AbbVie, with Daiwa America raising it to a "strong-buy" rating and Morgan Stanley increasing its target from $250.00 to $255.00.
• AbbVie reported $2.97 earnings per share for the last quarter, missing estimates of $3.24, but achieved revenue of $15.42 billion, exceeding expectations by $490 million.

AbbVie (NYSE:ABBV - Get Free Report) had its target price raised by BMO Capital Markets from $215.00 to $240.00 in a research report issued on Friday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an "outperform" rating on the stock. BMO Capital Markets' price target would suggest a potential upside of 9.05% from the company's current price.

A number of other research firms have also recently weighed in on ABBV. Daiwa America raised shares of AbbVie from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Thursday, August 7th. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on shares of AbbVie from $250.00 to $255.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, August 1st. Citigroup raised their price objective on shares of AbbVie to $205.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, June 11th. Guggenheim raised their price objective on shares of AbbVie from $216.00 to $227.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, August 1st. Finally, Raymond James Financial reissued an "outperform" rating on shares of AbbVie in a report on Monday, August 25th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have assigned a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $216.14.

AbbVie Stock Up 4.0%

ABBV stock opened at $220.09 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.74, a quick ratio of 0.61 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 44.14. AbbVie has a twelve month low of $163.81 and a twelve month high of $221.77. The company's 50 day moving average is $199.67 and its two-hundred day moving average is $194.48. The stock has a market cap of $388.80 billion, a P/E ratio of 104.81, a PEG ratio of 1.36 and a beta of 0.53.

AbbVie (NYSE:ABBV - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 31st. The company reported $2.97 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $3.24 by ($0.27). AbbVie had a return on equity of 699.66% and a net margin of 6.45%.The company had revenue of $15.42 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.93 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $2.65 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 6.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts expect that AbbVie will post 12.31 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP Nicholas Donoghoe sold 13,295 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $198.51, for a total transaction of $2,639,190.45. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 58,247 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,562,611.97. This trade represents a 18.58% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Azita Saleki-Gerhardt sold 42,370 shares of AbbVie stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $198.42, for a total transaction of $8,407,055.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 177,292 shares in the company, valued at approximately $35,178,278.64. This trade represents a 19.29% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.25% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On AbbVie

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Marshall & Sullivan Inc. WA purchased a new stake in shares of AbbVie during the 2nd quarter worth $25,000. Evolution Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of AbbVie during the 2nd quarter worth $26,000. TD Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of AbbVie by 82.9% during the 1st quarter. TD Capital Management LLC now owns 128 shares of the company's stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 58 shares in the last quarter. Spurstone Advisory Services LLC purchased a new stake in shares of AbbVie during the 2nd quarter worth $28,000. Finally, Abound Financial LLC purchased a new stake in shares of AbbVie during the 1st quarter worth $30,000. 70.23% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

AbbVie Company Profile

AbbVie Inc discovers, develops, manufactures, and sells pharmaceuticals worldwide. The company offers Humira, an injection for autoimmune and intestinal Behçet's diseases, and pyoderma gangrenosum; Skyrizi to treat moderate to severe plaque psoriasis, psoriatic disease, and Crohn's disease; Rinvoq to treat rheumatoid and psoriatic arthritis, ankylosing spondylitis, atopic dermatitis, axial spondyloarthropathy, ulcerative colitis, and Crohn's disease; Imbruvica for the treatment of adult patients with blood cancers; Epkinly to treat lymphoma; Elahere to treat cancer; and Venclexta/Venclyxto to treat blood cancers.

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