AbbVie Inc. $ABBV Shares Bought by Evanson Asset Management LLC

Key Points

• Evanson Asset Management LLC increased its stake in AbbVie by 36.2%, acquiring an additional 1,550 shares, bringing its total ownership to 5,831 shares worth approximately $1.08 million.
• A number of analysts have set new price targets for AbbVie, with recommendations ranging from an "overweight" rating with a target of $231.00 to a "buy" rating with a target of $270.00, reflecting strong confidence in the stock's performance.
• AbbVie recently announced a quarterly dividend of $1.64 per share, representing an annualized dividend yield of 2.9%, despite a high payout ratio of 312.38%.

Evanson Asset Management LLC increased its stake in AbbVie Inc. (NYSE:ABBV - Free Report) by 36.2% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 5,831 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 1,550 shares during the period. Evanson Asset Management LLC's holdings in AbbVie were worth $1,082,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Marshall & Sullivan Inc. WA purchased a new stake in shares of AbbVie during the 2nd quarter valued at $25,000. TD Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in AbbVie by 82.9% in the first quarter. TD Capital Management LLC now owns 128 shares of the company's stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 58 shares during the last quarter. Abound Financial LLC purchased a new stake in AbbVie during the first quarter valued at about $30,000. Siemens Fonds Invest GmbH increased its stake in AbbVie by 197.6% during the fourth quarter. Siemens Fonds Invest GmbH now owns 179,440 shares of the company's stock worth $32,000 after acquiring an additional 119,141 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Cypress Capital Management LLC WY purchased a new position in shares of AbbVie in the 1st quarter worth about $35,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.23% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have weighed in on the stock. 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 price target on the stock. Citigroup raised their price objective on AbbVie to $205.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 11th. Daiwa Capital Markets upgraded 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. Evercore ISI raised their target price on AbbVie from $207.00 to $222.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday. Finally, Berenberg Bank upgraded AbbVie from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and upped their price target for the stock from $170.00 to $270.00 in a report on Wednesday, September 17th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have given a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, AbbVie has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $223.45.

AbbVie Trading Up 0.1%

Shares of ABBV opened at $222.88 on Wednesday. AbbVie Inc. has a one year low of $163.81 and a one year high of $225.16. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $204.47 and a 200 day moving average price of $195.04. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 44.14, a quick ratio of 0.61 and a current ratio of 0.74. The company has a market capitalization of $393.74 billion, a P/E ratio of 106.14, a P/E/G ratio of 1.33 and a beta of 0.53.

AbbVie (NYSE:ABBV - Get Free Report) last announced its 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 net margin of 6.45% and a return on equity of 699.66%. The business had revenue of $15.42 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.93 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $2.65 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter 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 fiscal year.

AbbVie Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 14th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, October 15th will be given a $1.64 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, October 15th. This represents a $6.56 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.9%. AbbVie's payout ratio is presently 312.38%.

Insider Transactions at AbbVie

In other AbbVie news, EVP Azita Saleki-Gerhardt sold 42,370 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 transaction, 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 transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Nicholas Donoghoe sold 13,295 shares of AbbVie 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 directly owned 58,247 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $11,562,611.97. This represents a 18.58% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.08% of the company's stock.

AbbVie 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.

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.