AbbVie (NYSE:ABBV) Stock Price Down 1.2% - Here's What Happened

Key Points

• AbbVie Inc.'s stock price fell by 1.2% to $228.57, with trading volume decreasing by 48% compared to its average.
• Analysts have mixed opinions on AbbVie, with Piper Sandler raising its price target to $284.00 but other firms like Wall Street Zen downgrading shares from "buy" to "hold."
• AbbVie declared a quarterly dividend of $1.64 per share, representing an annualized yield of 2.9%, while insiders have been selling shares recently.

AbbVie Inc. (NYSE:ABBV - Get Free Report) was down 1.2% during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as low as $228.43 and last traded at $228.57. Approximately 3,380,782 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 48% from the average daily volume of 6,442,735 shares. The stock had previously closed at $231.39.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have recently issued reports on ABBV shares. Weiss Ratings reissued a "hold (c)" rating on shares of AbbVie in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. UBS Group set a $251.00 price objective on shares of AbbVie in a research note on Friday, October 3rd. Wall Street Zen cut shares of AbbVie from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, October 11th. Piper Sandler boosted their price objective on shares of AbbVie from $231.00 to $284.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, October 10th. Finally, Erste Group Bank cut shares of AbbVie from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 14th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have assigned a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, AbbVie currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $234.80.

AbbVie Trading Down 1.2%

The business's 50-day moving average is $219.24 and its two-hundred day moving average is $198.07. 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 stock has a market capitalization of $403.79 billion, a PE ratio of 108.84, a PEG ratio of 1.45 and a beta of 0.51.

AbbVie (NYSE:ABBV - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results 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 business had revenue of $15.42 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $14.93 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $2.65 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 6.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts predict that AbbVie Inc. will post 12.31 earnings per share for the current year.

AbbVie Dividend Announcement

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

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other AbbVie news, EVP Azita Saleki-Gerhardt sold 42,370 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $198.42, for a total value of $8,407,055.40. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 177,292 shares in the company, valued at $35,178,278.64. The trade was a 19.29% decrease in their position. The sale 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 on Tuesday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $198.51, for a total transaction of $2,639,190.45. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 58,247 shares in the company, valued at $11,562,611.97. This represents a 18.58% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.08% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On AbbVie

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Marshall & Sullivan Inc. WA acquired a new stake in shares of AbbVie in the 2nd quarter valued at about $25,000. Evolution Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of AbbVie in the 2nd quarter valued at about $26,000. TD Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of AbbVie by 82.9% in the 1st quarter. TD Capital Management LLC now owns 128 shares of the company's stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 58 shares in the last quarter. Spurstone Advisory Services LLC acquired a new stake in shares of AbbVie in the 2nd quarter valued at about $28,000. Finally, Abound Financial LLC acquired a new stake in shares of AbbVie in the 1st quarter valued at about $30,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.23% of the company's stock.

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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