AbbVie Inc. $ABBV Shares Purchased by Phoenix Financial Ltd.

Key Points

• Phoenix Financial Ltd. increased its AbbVie stake by 26.1% in the fourth quarter, buying 8,047 more shares and bringing its total holdings to 38,852 shares valued at about $8.9 million.
• AbbVie reported strong quarterly results, with EPS of $2.65 beating estimates and revenue of $15 billion topping expectations; revenue also rose 12.4% year over year.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $1.73 per share, equivalent to $6.92 annually and a 3.3% yield, while analysts currently rate the stock a consensus Moderate Buy with an average price target of $253.10.

Phoenix Financial Ltd. increased its stake in shares of AbbVie Inc. (NYSE:ABBV - Free Report) by 26.1% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 38,852 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 8,047 shares during the period. Phoenix Financial Ltd.'s holdings in AbbVie were worth $8,876,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in ABBV. Chelsea Counsel Co. purchased a new stake in shares of AbbVie during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $26,000. Westend Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in AbbVie during the fourth quarter worth $29,000. Texas Capital Bancshares Inc TX acquired a new position in AbbVie during the third quarter worth $31,000. Legacy Wealth Managment LLC ID boosted its position in AbbVie by 115.9% during the fourth quarter. Legacy Wealth Managment LLC ID now owns 136 shares of the company's stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 73 shares in the last quarter. Finally, WestEnd Advisors LLC grew its holdings in AbbVie by 160.4% in the fourth quarter. WestEnd Advisors LLC now owns 138 shares of the company's stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 85 shares during the last quarter. 70.23% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at AbbVie

In related news, EVP Perry C. Siatis sold 22,381 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $230.00, for a total transaction of $5,147,630.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 38,137 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,771,510. This trade represents a 36.98% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, SVP David Ryan Purdue sold 5,230 shares of AbbVie stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $233.56, for a total transaction of $1,221,518.80. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 2,654 shares of the company's stock, valued at $619,868.24. The trade was a 66.34% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders own 0.06% of the company's stock.

AbbVie Stock Up 1.2%

NYSE ABBV opened at $210.95 on Friday. AbbVie Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $176.57 and a fifty-two week high of $244.81. The business has a fifty day moving average of $210.78 and a 200-day moving average of $220.17. The stock has a market cap of $372.71 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 103.92, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.72 and a beta of 0.32.

AbbVie (NYSE:ABBV - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 29th. The company reported $2.65 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.59 by $0.06. The business had revenue of $15 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.72 billion. AbbVie had a negative return on equity of 576.45% and a net margin of 5.79%.During the same quarter last year, the company earned $2.46 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 12.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts anticipate that AbbVie Inc. will post 14.32 EPS for the current year.

AbbVie Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 15th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, April 15th will be issued a dividend of $1.73 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 15th. This represents a $6.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.3%. AbbVie's payout ratio is 340.89%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on ABBV shares. Piper Sandler raised their price target on AbbVie from $294.00 to $298.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday. Barclays started coverage on shares of AbbVie in a research report on Thursday, February 19th. They issued an "overweight" rating and a $275.00 price objective on the stock. DZ Bank raised shares of AbbVie from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Weiss Ratings restated a "hold (c)" rating on shares of AbbVie in a report on Wednesday, January 21st. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada assumed coverage on shares of AbbVie in a report on Tuesday, February 24th. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $260.00 price target on the stock. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have issued a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $253.10.

AbbVie Profile

AbbVie is a global, research-driven biopharmaceutical company that was created as a spin-off from Abbott Laboratories in 2013 and is headquartered in North Chicago, Illinois. The company focuses on discovering, developing and commercializing therapies for complex and often chronic medical conditions. Its operations span research and development, manufacturing, regulatory affairs and commercialization, with an emphasis on bringing specialty medicines to market across multiple therapeutic areas.

AbbVie's product portfolio and pipeline cover several major therapeutic categories, including immunology, oncology, neuroscience, virology and women's health.

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