Assenagon Asset Management S.A. Has $293.40 Million Holdings in AbbVie Inc. $ABBV

Key Points

• Assenagon Asset Management cut its AbbVie stake by 54.4% in the first quarter, but still held 1,349,044 shares valued at about $293.4 million at quarter-end.
• AbbVie reported better-than-expected quarterly results, with EPS of $2.65 and revenue of $15 billion, both topping analyst estimates and showing 12.4% year-over-year revenue growth.
• The company also highlighted positive developments in its pipeline and products, including EU approval for SKYRIZI in pediatric plaque psoriasis, EU approval for MAVIRET in acute hepatitis C, and a new early-stage bretisilocin study.

Assenagon Asset Management S.A. decreased its holdings in AbbVie Inc. (NYSE:ABBV - Free Report) by 54.4% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 1,349,044 shares of the company's stock after selling 1,608,836 shares during the quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. owned 0.08% of AbbVie worth $293,404,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Chelsea Counsel Co. purchased a new position in shares of AbbVie in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $26,000. Litman Gregory Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in AbbVie during the fourth quarter worth $28,000. Imprint Wealth LLC boosted its position in AbbVie by 56.2% in the fourth quarter. Imprint Wealth LLC now owns 125 shares of the company's stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 45 shares during the last quarter. Westend Capital Management LLC bought a new position in AbbVie in the 4th quarter valued at $29,000. Finally, IFC & Insurance Marketing Inc. bought a new position in AbbVie in the 4th quarter valued at $31,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.23% of the company's stock.

AbbVie Stock Performance

ABBV stock opened at $234.79 on Thursday. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $213.64 and a 200-day moving average of $218.83. AbbVie Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $181.73 and a fifty-two week high of $244.81. The company has a market capitalization of $414.83 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 115.66, a PEG ratio of 0.72 and a beta of 0.32.

AbbVie (NYSE:ABBV - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 29th. The company reported $2.65 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.59 by $0.06. AbbVie had a negative return on equity of 576.45% and a net margin of 5.79%.The business had revenue of $15 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $14.72 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $2.46 EPS. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 12.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts predict that AbbVie Inc. will post 14.3 EPS for the current year.

AbbVie Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 14th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, July 15th will be given a dividend of $1.73 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, July 15th. This represents a $6.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.9%. AbbVie's dividend payout ratio is currently 340.89%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

ABBV has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Wall Street Zen cut AbbVie from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Sunday, June 7th. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on shares of AbbVie from $270.00 to $278.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Canaccord Genuity Group raised their price objective on shares of AbbVie from $265.00 to $273.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "hold (c)" rating on shares of AbbVie in a research note on Monday, June 8th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets reissued an "outperform" rating on shares of AbbVie in a research report on Monday, March 9th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have given a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $253.81.

Key Stories Impacting AbbVie

Here are the key news stories impacting AbbVie this week:

• Positive Sentiment: AbbVie announced European Commission approval of SKYRIZI for pediatric plaque psoriasis, expanding the drug’s addressable market into younger patients and adding a new dosing option. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: AbbVie also received EU approval for MAVIRET in acute hepatitis C, strengthening an already approved franchise and broadening its use in Europe. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: AbbVie expanded its pipeline with a new early-stage bretisilocin Phase 1 safety study, signaling continued investment in future growth assets. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Multiple market articles highlighted AbbVie as a potential value/dividend buy and noted analyst price-target support, which may reinforce investor confidence but does not by itself change fundamentals. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Several pieces focused on the broader M&A narrative and the Apogee takeover process, including shareholder scrutiny and investor commentary, which keeps attention on execution risk around the deal. Article Title

About AbbVie

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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