AbbVie Inc. (NYSE:ABBV) Position Reduced by Ethic Inc.

Key Points

• Ethic Inc. reduced its holdings in AbbVie Inc. by 30.6% in Q1, now owning 67,797 shares worth approximately $13.98 million.
• Analysts are generally optimistic, with Piper Sandler initiating coverage with an "overweight" rating and a price target of $231.00 for AbbVie.
• AbbVie recently announced a quarterly dividend of $1.64 per share, representing an annual yield of 3.2%.

Ethic Inc. trimmed its holdings in shares of AbbVie Inc. (NYSE:ABBV - Free Report) by 30.6% during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 67,797 shares of the company's stock after selling 29,888 shares during the period. Ethic Inc.'s holdings in AbbVie were worth $13,984,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the business. Steel Grove Capital Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of AbbVie by 1.7% during the fourth quarter. Steel Grove Capital Advisors LLC now owns 3,110 shares of the company's stock worth $553,000 after purchasing an additional 52 shares during the period. Private Management Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of AbbVie by 1.9% during the first quarter. Private Management Group Inc. now owns 2,938 shares of the company's stock worth $616,000 after purchasing an additional 54 shares during the period. Connecticut Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of AbbVie by 1.6% during the fourth quarter. Connecticut Wealth Management LLC now owns 3,711 shares of the company's stock worth $660,000 after purchasing an additional 57 shares during the period. Castle Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of AbbVie by 3.4% during the first quarter. Castle Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,725 shares of the company's stock worth $361,000 after purchasing an additional 57 shares during the period. Finally, High Falls Advisors Inc increased its holdings in shares of AbbVie by 3.2% in the 1st quarter. High Falls Advisors Inc now owns 1,863 shares of the company's stock worth $390,000 after acquiring an additional 57 shares during the period. 70.23% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts recently weighed in on ABBV shares. Piper Sandler started coverage on shares of AbbVie in a report on Tuesday. They issued an "overweight" rating and a $231.00 price objective on the stock. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of AbbVie from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 22nd. Cantor Fitzgerald assumed coverage on shares of AbbVie in a research report on Tuesday, April 22nd. They issued an "overweight" rating and a $210.00 target price for the company. Daiwa Capital Markets upgraded shares of 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. Finally, Daiwa America upgraded shares of AbbVie from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, August 7th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eighteen have assigned a buy rating and four have given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, AbbVie currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $214.95.

Insider Buying and Selling at AbbVie

In related news, EVP Nicholas Donoghoe sold 13,295 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $198.51, for a total transaction of $2,639,190.45. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 58,247 shares in the company, valued at $11,562,611.97. This represents a 18.58% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Azita Saleki-Gerhardt sold 42,370 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated 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 in the company, valued at approximately $35,178,278.64. This trade represents a 19.29% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.25% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

AbbVie Trading Up 1.6%

Shares of ABBV stock opened at $204.78 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $361.75 billion, a P/E ratio of 97.51, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.29 and a beta of 0.50. The company has a current ratio of 0.74, a quick ratio of 0.61 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 44.14. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $190.74 and its 200 day simple moving average is $191.86. AbbVie Inc. has a 1 year low of $163.81 and a 1 year high of $218.66.

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 the consensus estimate of $3.24 by ($0.27). The business had revenue of $15.42 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $14.93 billion. AbbVie had a net margin of 6.45% and a return on equity of 699.66%. The company's quarterly revenue was up 6.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $2.65 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that AbbVie Inc. will post 12.31 EPS for the current year.

AbbVie Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, July 15th will be paid a $1.64 dividend. This represents a $6.56 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.2%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, July 15th. AbbVie's payout ratio is currently 312.38%.

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.

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