Ferguson Wellman Capital Management Inc. Boosts Holdings in AbbVie Inc. $ABBV

Key Points

• Ferguson Wellman Capital Management Inc. increased its stake in AbbVie Inc. by 0.8%, owning a total of 644,425 shares valued at approximately $119.6 million.
• Insider transactions reported significant selling, with EVP Azita Saleki-Gerhardt selling 42,370 shares for over $8.4 million, resulting in a 19.29% reduction of their holdings.
• AbbVie recently declared a quarterly dividend of $1.64 per share, with an upcoming ex-dividend date of October 15th, representing an annual yield of 3.0%.

Ferguson Wellman Capital Management Inc. increased its position in shares of AbbVie Inc. (NYSE:ABBV - Free Report) by 0.8% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 644,425 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 5,132 shares during the quarter. AbbVie comprises 2.1% of Ferguson Wellman Capital Management Inc.'s holdings, making the stock its 11th biggest position. Ferguson Wellman Capital Management Inc.'s holdings in AbbVie were worth $119,618,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of ABBV. TD Capital Management LLC increased its stake in AbbVie by 82.9% during 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. Abound Financial LLC acquired a new position in AbbVie during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Cypress Capital Management LLC WY acquired a new position in AbbVie during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Pinney & Scofield Inc. acquired a new position in AbbVie during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Finally, Inlight Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in AbbVie during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $42,000. Institutional investors own 70.23% of the company's stock.

AbbVie Stock Performance

NYSE ABBV traded up $1.12 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $221.93. 4,441,087 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 4,288,843. The business's 50 day moving average is $202.52 and its 200-day moving average is $194.91. AbbVie Inc. has a 1 year low of $163.81 and a 1 year high of $222.07. The company has a market capitalization of $392.05 billion, a P/E ratio of 105.68, a P/E/G ratio of 1.32 and a beta of 0.53. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 44.14, a quick ratio of 0.61 and a current ratio of 0.74.

AbbVie (NYSE:ABBV - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The company reported $2.97 earnings per share (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 firm 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 business's quarterly revenue was up 6.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts forecast that AbbVie Inc. will post 12.31 EPS for the current fiscal year.

AbbVie Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 14th. Investors of record on Wednesday, October 15th will be issued a dividend of $1.64 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, October 15th. This represents a $6.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.0%. AbbVie's dividend payout ratio is 312.38%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

ABBV has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of AbbVie from $200.00 to $235.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday. Raymond James Financial restated an "outperform" rating on shares of AbbVie in a research note on Monday, August 25th. Berenberg Bank upgraded shares of AbbVie from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $170.00 to $270.00 in a research note on Wednesday. Daiwa Capital Markets upgraded shares of AbbVie from a "neutral" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $214.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Thursday, August 7th. Finally, Piper Sandler began coverage on shares of AbbVie in a research note on Tuesday, August 12th. They issued an "overweight" rating and a $231.00 price objective on the stock. 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 company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $222.68.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related 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 sale, the executive vice president directly owned 177,292 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $35,178,278.64. This represents a 19.29% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Nicholas Donoghoe sold 13,295 shares of the 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 sale, the executive vice president directly owned 58,247 shares in the company, valued at $11,562,611.97. This trade represents a 18.58% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.25% 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.