AbbVie (NYSE:ABBV) Sets New 12-Month High - Time to Buy?

Key Points

• AbbVie reached a new 12-month high in its stock price, trading at $226.44, with a recent target price increase by several analysts, including JPMorgan boosting it to $235.00.
• The company recently announced a quarterly dividend of $1.64 per share, which represents a 2.9% dividend yield and is payable on November 14th.
• Despite reporting a miss on earnings per share of $2.97 versus a consensus of $3.24, AbbVie generated $15.42 billion in revenue, exceeding estimates of $14.93 billion.

AbbVie Inc. (NYSE:ABBV - Get Free Report) reached a new 52-week high during trading on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $225.41 and last traded at $226.44, with a volume of 270130 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $223.16.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

ABBV has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on AbbVie from $200.00 to $235.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 16th. Daiwa Capital Markets raised AbbVie from a "neutral" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $214.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Thursday, August 7th. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on AbbVie from $250.00 to $255.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, August 1st. Cantor Fitzgerald lifted their price target on shares of AbbVie from $215.00 to $245.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, September 15th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets increased their price objective on shares of AbbVie from $215.00 to $240.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, September 12th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have assigned a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $223.45.

AbbVie Trading Up 0.9%

The company has a current ratio of 0.74, a quick ratio of 0.61 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 44.14. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $207.00 and a 200-day moving average price of $195.12. The company has a market capitalization of $397.79 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 107.12, a PEG ratio of 1.29 and a beta of 0.53.

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

AbbVie Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 14th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, October 15th will be issued a dividend of $1.64 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, October 15th. This represents a $6.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.9%. AbbVie's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 312.38%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other AbbVie news, EVP Azita Saleki-Gerhardt sold 42,370 shares of the 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 transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 177,292 shares of the company's stock, valued at $35,178,278.64. This represents a 19.29% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Nicholas Donoghoe sold 13,295 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $198.51, for a total value of $2,639,190.45. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 58,247 shares of the company's stock, valued at $11,562,611.97. This represents a 18.58% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.08% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On AbbVie

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Sivia Capital Partners LLC grew its position in AbbVie by 1.1% in the 2nd quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 4,571 shares of the company's stock worth $848,000 after purchasing an additional 51 shares during the last quarter. FF Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of AbbVie by 3.6% during the 2nd quarter. FF Advisors LLC now owns 1,539 shares of the company's stock worth $286,000 after purchasing an additional 53 shares in the last quarter. Landaas & Co. WI ADV increased its position in shares of AbbVie by 1.1% during the second quarter. Landaas & Co. WI ADV now owns 4,955 shares of the company's stock valued at $920,000 after purchasing an additional 53 shares during the period. Bernardo Wealth Planning LLC raised its stake in shares of AbbVie by 2.9% in the second quarter. Bernardo Wealth Planning LLC now owns 1,909 shares of the company's stock valued at $354,000 after purchasing an additional 53 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Private Management Group Inc. lifted its position in AbbVie by 1.9% in the first quarter. Private Management Group Inc. now owns 2,938 shares of the company's stock worth $616,000 after purchasing an additional 54 shares during the period. 70.23% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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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