AbbVie Inc. $ABBV Shares Sold by Ariel Investments LLC

Key Points

• Ariel Investments LLC reduced its holdings in AbbVie Inc. by 44.4% in the 1st quarter, owning 84,394 shares worth approximately $17.68 million after selling 67,358 shares.
• Institutional investors and hedge funds collectively own 70.23% of AbbVie's stock, with notable increases in holdings from firms like Goldman Sachs and Vanguard Group.
• AbbVie recently declared a quarterly dividend of $1.64 per share, resulting in a yield of 3.1%, while experiencing a miss on earnings expectations for the previous quarter.

Ariel Investments LLC lowered its stake in shares of AbbVie Inc. (NYSE:ABBV - Free Report) by 44.4% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 84,394 shares of the company's stock after selling 67,358 shares during the period. Ariel Investments LLC's holdings in AbbVie were worth $17,682,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Crestline Management LP raised its holdings in AbbVie by 438.4% in the fourth quarter. Crestline Management LP now owns 35,311 shares of the company's stock worth $6,275,000 after purchasing an additional 28,753 shares in the last quarter. Narus Financial Partners LLC grew its stake in shares of AbbVie by 25.3% during the first quarter. Narus Financial Partners LLC now owns 1,988 shares of the company's stock worth $417,000 after acquiring an additional 401 shares during the last quarter. Highland Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of AbbVie by 6.3% during the first quarter. Highland Capital Management LLC now owns 46,853 shares of the company's stock valued at $9,817,000 after acquiring an additional 2,792 shares in the last quarter. Weaver Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of AbbVie by 3.9% during the first quarter. Weaver Capital Management LLC now owns 8,240 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,727,000 after acquiring an additional 310 shares in the last quarter. Finally, North Star Asset Management Inc. raised its position in shares of AbbVie by 0.5% in the 1st quarter. North Star Asset Management Inc. now owns 161,320 shares of the company's stock valued at $33,800,000 after purchasing an additional 756 shares during the last quarter. 70.23% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

AbbVie Stock Performance

NYSE:ABBV traded down $0.66 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $212.34. The company's stock had a trading volume of 4,465,366 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,155,747. The business's fifty day moving average is $197.74 and its two-hundred day moving average is $194.15. The stock has a market cap of $375.11 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 101.11, a PEG ratio of 1.37 and a beta of 0.53. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 44.14, a current ratio of 0.74 and a quick ratio of 0.61. 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 issued its earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The company reported $2.97 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $3.24 by ($0.27). The company had revenue of $15.42 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $14.93 billion. AbbVie had a return on equity of 699.66% and a net margin of 6.45%.The firm's quarterly revenue was up 6.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $2.65 EPS. Analysts anticipate that AbbVie Inc. will post 12.31 EPS for the current fiscal year.

AbbVie Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 14th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, October 15th will be issued a dividend of $1.64 per share. This represents a $6.56 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, October 15th. AbbVie's payout ratio is 312.38%.

Insider Buying and Selling at AbbVie

In other AbbVie news, EVP Azita Saleki-Gerhardt sold 42,370 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the executive vice president owned 177,292 shares in the company, valued at approximately $35,178,278.64. This represents a 19.29% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Nicholas Donoghoe sold 13,295 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 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. Insiders own 0.25% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have weighed in on ABBV shares. Bank of America boosted their target price on shares of AbbVie to $204.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, June 9th. Citigroup upped their target price 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 target price for the company in a research note on Thursday, August 7th. Wall Street Zen cut AbbVie from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 22nd. Finally, Raymond James Financial reissued an "outperform" rating on shares of AbbVie in a report on Monday, August 25th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have issued a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, AbbVie has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average 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.