AbbVie Inc. $ABBV is Welch Group LLC's 9th Largest Position

Key Points

• Welch Group LLC increased its position in AbbVie Inc. by 1.5% in Q2, holding a total of 367,359 shares, making AbbVie the firm's 9th largest position, valued at approximately $68 million.
• Recent analyst updates have seen firms like Berenberg Bank and Daiwa Capital Markets upgrade AbbVie ratings and set target prices as high as $284, with a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a target price of $231.90.
• AbbVie announced a quarterly dividend of $1.64 per share, indicating a 2.8% yield, with the ex-dividend date set for October 15th.

Welch Group LLC lifted its position in AbbVie Inc. (NYSE:ABBV - Free Report) by 1.5% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 367,359 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 5,347 shares during the period. AbbVie comprises 2.8% of Welch Group LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 9th largest holding. Welch Group LLC's holdings in AbbVie were worth $68,189,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of ABBV. Brighton Jones LLC increased its stake in shares of AbbVie by 17.4% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 22,912 shares of the company's stock worth $4,072,000 after purchasing an additional 3,401 shares in the last quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC increased its stake in shares of AbbVie by 72.7% in the fourth quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC now owns 7,279 shares of the company's stock worth $1,294,000 after purchasing an additional 3,064 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its stake in AbbVie by 23.8% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 48,848 shares of the company's stock valued at $10,235,000 after acquiring an additional 9,395 shares in the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC grew its stake in AbbVie by 5.0% during the first quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 536,450 shares of the company's stock valued at $112,398,000 after acquiring an additional 25,385 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Hennessy Advisors Inc. grew its stake in AbbVie by 6.0% during the first quarter. Hennessy Advisors Inc. now owns 31,900 shares of the company's stock valued at $6,684,000 after acquiring an additional 1,800 shares in the last quarter. 70.23% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently weighed in on ABBV. Berenberg Bank raised shares of AbbVie from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and raised their target price for the company from $170.00 to $270.00 in a research note on Wednesday, September 17th. Daiwa Capital Markets raised shares of AbbVie from a "neutral" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $214.00 target price for the company in a research note on Thursday, August 7th. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on shares of AbbVie from $250.00 to $255.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, August 1st. Guggenheim raised their target price on shares of AbbVie from $216.00 to $227.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, August 1st. Finally, Piper Sandler raised their target price on shares of AbbVie from $231.00 to $284.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have issued a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $231.90.

AbbVie Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:ABBV opened at $230.88 on Monday. AbbVie Inc. has a 52 week low of $163.81 and a 52 week high of $244.81. The stock has a market capitalization of $407.86 billion, a P/E ratio of 109.94, a PEG ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 0.51. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $214.84 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $196.71. The company has a quick ratio of 0.61, a current ratio of 0.74 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 44.14.

AbbVie (NYSE:ABBV - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 31st. The company reported $2.97 EPS 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 during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $14.93 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $2.65 earnings per share. The business's quarterly revenue was up 6.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts expect that AbbVie Inc. will post 12.31 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

AbbVie Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 14th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, October 15th will be issued a $1.64 dividend. This represents a $6.56 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.8%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, October 15th. AbbVie's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 312.38%.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Nicholas Donoghoe sold 13,295 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 5th. The shares were 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 owned 58,247 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,562,611.97. This trade represents a 18.58% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Azita Saleki-Gerhardt sold 42,370 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $198.42, for a total transaction of $8,407,055.40. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 177,292 shares of the company's stock, valued at $35,178,278.64. This trade represents a 19.29% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.08% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding ABBV? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for AbbVie Inc. (NYSE:ABBV - Free Report).

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.