AbbVie Inc. $ABBV Stock Holdings Lifted by Centric Wealth Management

Key Points

• Centric Wealth Management increased its stake in AbbVie Inc. by 17.9% during the first quarter, holding a total of 21,517 shares valued at approximately $4.51 million.
• AbbVie has received multiple upgrades from analysts, including a price target increase to $255.00 by Morgan Stanley, indicating strong market confidence in the stock.
• The company recently declared a quarterly dividend of $1.64 per share, reflecting an annual yield of 3.1%, although its payout ratio stands at a high 312.38%.

Centric Wealth Management increased its position in AbbVie Inc. (NYSE:ABBV - Free Report) by 17.9% in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 21,517 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 3,261 shares during the period. AbbVie comprises about 1.2% of Centric Wealth Management's investment portfolio, making the stock its 17th biggest holding. Centric Wealth Management's holdings in AbbVie were worth $4,508,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in AbbVie by 0.5% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 173,917,865 shares of the company's stock worth $36,439,271,000 after buying an additional 845,787 shares during the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp raised its holdings in AbbVie by 0.9% in the first quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 22,013,920 shares of the company's stock worth $4,612,357,000 after purchasing an additional 189,294 shares during the period. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of AbbVie by 31.6% during the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 14,646,908 shares of the company's stock worth $3,068,820,000 after acquiring an additional 3,519,187 shares during the period. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC grew its position in AbbVie by 18.5% in the fourth quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 12,058,706 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,142,832,000 after purchasing an additional 1,882,780 shares in the last quarter. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC grew its position in shares of AbbVie by 25,841.6% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 10,234,737 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,144,382,000 after acquiring an additional 10,195,284 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.23% of the company's stock.

AbbVie Price Performance

Shares of ABBV stock traded up $1.23 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $211.63. 4,221,691 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 6,564,927. 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 Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $163.81 and a fifty-two week high of $218.66. The firm has a market cap of $373.86 billion, a P/E ratio of 100.78, a P/E/G ratio of 1.35 and a beta of 0.53. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $195.58 and a two-hundred day moving average of $193.66.

AbbVie (NYSE:ABBV - Get Free Report) last posted its 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 firm 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 company posted $2.65 EPS. AbbVie's revenue was up 6.6% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts forecast that AbbVie Inc. will post 12.31 EPS for the current year.

AbbVie Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, July 15th were given a $1.64 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, July 15th. This represents a $6.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.1%. AbbVie's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 312.38%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of AbbVie from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, May 22nd. Piper Sandler initiated coverage on shares of AbbVie in a research report on Tuesday, August 12th. They set an "overweight" rating and a $231.00 target price for the company. Bank of America raised their price objective on shares of AbbVie to $204.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, June 9th. Daiwa America raised shares of AbbVie from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, August 7th. Finally, Guggenheim lifted their target price on shares of AbbVie from $216.00 to $227.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, August 1st. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have given a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $214.95.

Insider Transactions at AbbVie

In other news, EVP Azita Saleki-Gerhardt sold 42,370 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $198.42, for a total value of $8,407,055.40. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly 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 transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Nicholas Donoghoe sold 13,295 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on 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 transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 58,247 shares of the company's stock, valued at $11,562,611.97. The trade was a 18.58% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.08% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.