Clark Capital Management Group Inc. Grows Stake in AbbVie Inc. $ABBV

Key Points

• Clark Capital Management Group Inc. significantly increased its stake in AbbVie by 14,552%, acquiring 571,720 shares which are now worth approximately $119.79 million.
• AbbVie reported quarterly earnings of $2.97 per share, which missed analyst estimates of $3.24, despite a revenue rise of 6.6% year-over-year.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $1.64, resulting in an annualized yield of 3.1%, although AbbVie’s dividend payout ratio stands at a high 312.38%.

Clark Capital Management Group Inc. increased its position in AbbVie Inc. (NYSE:ABBV - Free Report) by 14,552.0% in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 571,720 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 567,818 shares during the quarter. AbbVie accounts for 0.9% of Clark Capital Management Group Inc.'s portfolio, making the stock its 22nd largest position. Clark Capital Management Group Inc.'s holdings in AbbVie were worth $119,787,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. TD Capital Management LLC lifted its position in AbbVie by 82.9% in the 1st quarter. TD Capital Management LLC now owns 128 shares of the company's stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 58 shares during the last quarter. Abound Financial LLC bought a new stake in AbbVie in the 1st quarter worth approximately $30,000. Cypress Capital Management LLC WY bought a new stake in AbbVie in the 1st quarter worth approximately $35,000. Pinney & Scofield Inc. purchased a new position in AbbVie in the 4th quarter worth approximately $36,000. Finally, Inlight Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in AbbVie in the first quarter valued at approximately $42,000. Institutional investors own 70.23% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have weighed in on the company. Wall Street Zen downgraded AbbVie from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 22nd. Piper Sandler assumed coverage on AbbVie in a research report on Tuesday, August 12th. They issued an "overweight" rating and a $231.00 price objective for the company. Bank of America boosted their price objective on AbbVie to $204.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, June 9th. Citigroup boosted their price objective on AbbVie to $205.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 11th. Finally, Daiwa Capital Markets upgraded AbbVie from a "neutral" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $214.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Thursday, August 7th. Four 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 stock. According to MarketBeat.com, AbbVie has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $214.95.

Insider Buying and Selling at AbbVie

In related news, EVP Azita Saleki-Gerhardt sold 42,370 shares of the company's stock in a transaction 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 sale, the executive vice president directly owned 177,292 shares of the company's stock, valued at $35,178,278.64. This represents a 19.29% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Nicholas Donoghoe sold 13,295 shares of the company'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 completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 58,247 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,562,611.97. The trade was a 18.58% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.25% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

AbbVie Trading Down 0.3%

Shares of ABBV traded down $0.66 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $212.34. 4,465,366 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 4,155,747. 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 1 year low of $163.81 and a 1 year high of $218.66. The firm has a market capitalization of $375.11 billion, a P/E ratio of 101.11, a PEG ratio of 1.37 and a beta of 0.53. The business's 50-day moving average price is $197.74 and its 200-day moving average price is $194.13.

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 net margin of 6.45% and a return on equity of 699.66%. The business had revenue of $15.42 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $14.93 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $2.65 earnings per share. AbbVie's quarterly revenue was up 6.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that AbbVie Inc. will post 12.31 EPS for the current fiscal year.

AbbVie Dividend Announcement

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 paid a $1.64 dividend. This represents a $6.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, October 15th. AbbVie's dividend payout ratio is presently 312.38%.

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.