AbbVie (NYSE:ABBV) Shares Up 0.3% - Still a Buy?

AbbVie Inc. (NYSE:ABBV - Get Free Report)'s share price was up 0.3% during trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $180.50 and last traded at $177.93. Approximately 2,162,113 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 64% from the average daily volume of 5,938,355 shares. The stock had previously closed at $177.46.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages recently issued reports on ABBV. BMO Capital Markets upped their price target on AbbVie from $208.00 to $215.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Erste Group Bank upgraded shares of AbbVie to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Monday, March 17th. StockNews.com lowered shares of AbbVie from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 9th. Citigroup upped their target price on AbbVie from $205.00 to $215.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on AbbVie from $210.00 to $240.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have given a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, AbbVie presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $210.71.

AbbVie Stock Up 0.6 %

The company has a current ratio of 0.66, a quick ratio of 0.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 17.94. The firm has a market cap of $305.64 billion, a P/E ratio of 71.99, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.62 and a beta of 0.55. The stock's fifty day moving average is $198.47 and its two-hundred day moving average is $187.82.

AbbVie (NYSE:ABBV - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 31st. The company reported $2.16 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.98 by ($0.82). AbbVie had a return on equity of 296.28% and a net margin of 7.59%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $2.79 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts anticipate that AbbVie Inc. will post 12.31 earnings per share for the current year.

AbbVie Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, April 15th will be issued a dividend of $1.64 per share. This represents a $6.56 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.80%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, April 15th. AbbVie's payout ratio is 273.33%.

Insider Activity at AbbVie

In related news, EVP Perry C. Siatis sold 5,778 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $197.90, for a total value of $1,143,466.20. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 22,381 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,429,199.90. This represents a 20.52 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, SVP Kevin K. Buckbee sold 18,944 shares of AbbVie stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $203.41, for a total value of $3,853,399.04. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 11,496 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,338,401.36. This trade represents a 62.23 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 113,471 shares of company stock valued at $23,426,451 over the last three months. 0.25% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On AbbVie

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Fiduciary Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in AbbVie during the 4th quarter valued at about $29,000. EnRich Financial Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of AbbVie by 196.4% during the fourth quarter. EnRich Financial Partners LLC now owns 166 shares of the company's stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 110 shares during the last quarter. Promus Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of AbbVie during the fourth quarter worth about $30,000. Bradley & Co. Private Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of AbbVie in the fourth quarter worth about $31,000. Finally, Prudent Man Investment Management Inc. purchased a new position in AbbVie during the 4th quarter valued at about $32,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.23% of the company's stock.

About AbbVie

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.