Equitable Holdings Inc. Decreases Stock Holdings in AbbVie Inc. $ABBV

Key Points

• Equitable Holdings reduced its AbbVie stake by 4.8% in the second quarter, selling 4,782 shares and retaining 95,431 shares valued at approximately $24 million.
• Other major institutional investors generally increased their positions, with institutions and hedge funds collectively owning 70.23% of AbbVie’s stock.
• AbbVie reported stronger-than-expected quarterly results, while its pipeline and growth products—including Skyrizi and Rinvoq—help offset Humira’s biosimilar-driven decline. Analysts maintain a “Moderate Buy” consensus with an average price target of $275.95.

Equitable Holdings Inc. lowered its stake in AbbVie Inc. (NYSE:ABBV - Free Report) by 4.8% during the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 95,431 shares of the company's stock after selling 4,782 shares during the quarter. Equitable Holdings Inc.'s holdings in AbbVie were worth $24,014,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. State Street Corp raised its position in shares of AbbVie by 1.4% during the 4th quarter. State Street Corp now owns 80,940,931 shares of the company's stock worth $18,494,193,000 after purchasing an additional 1,119,274 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in AbbVie by 10.4% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 44,629,980 shares of the company's stock worth $10,179,099,000 after buying an additional 4,190,487 shares during the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE boosted its holdings in AbbVie by 1.4% in the 4th quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 25,824,399 shares of the company's stock worth $5,900,617,000 after buying an additional 356,394 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in AbbVie during the 4th quarter worth approximately $5,865,055,000. Finally, Capital Research Global Investors increased its stake in AbbVie by 0.7% during the 4th quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 25,408,200 shares of the company's stock worth $5,805,530,000 after buying an additional 177,370 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.23% of the company's stock.

Key Headlines Impacting AbbVie

Here are the key news stories impacting AbbVie this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Etentamig delivers a major Phase 3 win: AbbVie said its investigational BCMA x CD3 therapy met both primary endpoints in the CERVINO trial for relapsed/refractory multiple myeloma. Etentamig produced a 74% objective response rate versus 45.7% for standard therapies and reduced the risk of disease progression or death by 60%. The results could support a regulatory submission and give AbbVie an opportunity to compete in the growing BCMA-targeted treatment market. AbbVie Announces Positive Topline Results from the Phase 3 CERVINO Trial
• Positive Sentiment: Apogee acquisition expands immunology pipeline: AbbVie completed its approximately $10.9 billion purchase of Apogee Therapeutics. The deal adds late-stage zumilokibart for atopic dermatitis and additional respiratory and inflammatory disease programs, potentially strengthening growth beyond Humira. AbbVie Completes Acquisition of Apogee Therapeutics
• Positive Sentiment: Growth products continue to offset Humira erosion: Skyrizi and Rinvoq remain key drivers, with reported second-quarter sales growth of 24% and 25%, respectively. AbbVie’s established dividend record and broader pipeline also support the long-term investment case.
• Neutral Sentiment: Financial guidance was reaffirmed: AbbVie maintained its 2026 adjusted EPS outlook of $13.87–$14.07 and third-quarter guidance of $3.84–$3.88. However, the Apogee transaction is expected to dilute earnings initially before becoming accretive later in the decade. AbbVie Completes Acquisition of Apogee Therapeutics
• Negative Sentiment: Humira remains a significant headwind: The flagship drug’s revenue continues to fall following biosimilar competition, raising questions about how quickly newer products can replace the lost cash flow and support future dividend growth.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on AbbVie from $295.00 to $300.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, August 17th. BNP Paribas Exane boosted their price target on AbbVie from $218.00 to $247.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 11th. Barclays increased their price objective on AbbVie from $275.00 to $300.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 29th. Wall Street Zen lowered AbbVie from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Sunday, July 5th. Finally, UBS Group lifted their target price on shares of AbbVie from $230.00 to $260.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday, July 13th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nineteen have assigned a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $275.95.

AbbVie Stock Performance

Shares of AbbVie stock opened at $256.27 on Friday. The business's 50 day moving average price is $254.66 and its 200 day moving average price is $230.06. The company has a market cap of $452.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 72.39, a PEG ratio of 1.16 and a beta of 0.29. AbbVie Inc. has a one year low of $190.75 and a one year high of $267.47.

AbbVie (NYSE:ABBV - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Friday, July 31st. The company reported $3.65 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.61 by $0.04. AbbVie had a negative return on equity of 422.07% and a net margin of 9.80%.The company had revenue of $16.99 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $16.80 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $2.97 EPS. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 10.2% on a year-over-year basis. AbbVie has set its Q3 2026 guidance at 3.840-3.880 EPS. On average, analysts predict that AbbVie Inc. will post 14.05 EPS for the current fiscal year.

AbbVie Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 14th. Investors of record on Wednesday, July 15th were issued a $1.73 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, July 15th. This represents a $6.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.7%. AbbVie's dividend payout ratio is currently 195.48%.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Nicholas Donoghoe sold 32,710 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $250.00, for a total transaction of $8,177,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 74,430 shares in the company, valued at approximately $18,607,500. This trade represents a 30.53% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.06% of the company's stock.

AbbVie Profile

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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.

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