Acadian Asset Management LLC Has $29.90 Million Stock Position in AbbVie Inc. $ABBV

Key Points

• Acadian Asset Management LLC increased its stake in AbbVie Inc. by 5.7%, owning 142,756 shares valued at approximately $29.90 million at the end of the first quarter.
• Insider activity included significant sales by two executives, with EVP Azita Saleki-Gerhardt selling 42,370 shares worth over $8.4 million, and Nicholas Donoghoe selling 13,295 shares for approximately $2.6 million.
• AbbVie recently reported quarterly earnings of $2.97 per share, missing analyst expectations of $3.24, with year-over-year revenue growth of 6.6% to $15.42 billion.

Acadian Asset Management LLC raised its stake in AbbVie Inc. (NYSE:ABBV - Free Report) by 5.7% during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 142,756 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 7,640 shares during the period. Acadian Asset Management LLC's holdings in AbbVie were worth $29,898,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Narus Financial Partners LLC boosted its position in AbbVie by 25.3% in the first quarter. Narus Financial Partners LLC now owns 1,988 shares of the company's stock valued at $417,000 after buying an additional 401 shares in the last quarter. Highland Capital Management LLC boosted its position in AbbVie by 6.3% in the first quarter. Highland Capital Management LLC now owns 46,853 shares of the company's stock valued at $9,817,000 after buying an additional 2,792 shares in the last quarter. Weaver Capital Management LLC boosted its position in AbbVie by 3.9% in the first quarter. Weaver Capital Management LLC now owns 8,240 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,727,000 after buying an additional 310 shares in the last quarter. North Star Asset Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of AbbVie by 0.5% during the first quarter. North Star Asset Management Inc. now owns 161,320 shares of the company's stock worth $33,800,000 after purchasing an additional 756 shares during the period. Finally, Alpine Bank Wealth Management acquired a new position in shares of AbbVie during the first quarter worth $3,879,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.23% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at AbbVie

In other AbbVie news, EVP Azita Saleki-Gerhardt sold 42,370 shares of AbbVie stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $198.42, for a total value of $8,407,055.40. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 177,292 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $35,178,278.64. The trade was a 19.29% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Nicholas Donoghoe sold 13,295 shares of AbbVie stock in a transaction on 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 completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 58,247 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $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. Insiders own 0.25% of the company's stock.

AbbVie Price Performance

Shares of NYSE ABBV opened at $211.84 on Thursday. AbbVie Inc. has a twelve month low of $163.81 and a twelve month high of $218.66. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $199.06 and a 200 day simple moving average of $194.37. The company has a market capitalization of $374.23 billion, a PE ratio of 100.88, a P/E/G ratio of 1.35 and a beta of 0.53. 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 (NYSE:ABBV - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The company reported $2.97 earnings per share 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 the consensus estimate of $14.93 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $2.65 EPS. AbbVie's quarterly revenue was up 6.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that AbbVie Inc. will post 12.31 EPS for the current year.

AbbVie Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 14th. Shareholders 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 payout ratio is 312.38%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on ABBV shares. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of AbbVie from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, May 22nd. Bank of America lifted their price target on shares of AbbVie to $204.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, June 9th. Daiwa Capital Markets upgraded shares of AbbVie from a "neutral" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $214.00 price target on the stock in a report on Thursday, August 7th. Citigroup lifted their price target on shares of AbbVie to $205.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, June 11th. Finally, Raymond James Financial reiterated an "outperform" rating on shares of AbbVie in a report on Monday, August 25th. Four 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 company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $214.95.

About AbbVie

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.