Gradient Investments LLC Grows Stock Holdings in AbbVie Inc. $ABBV

Key Points

• Gradient Investments LLC increased its stock holdings in AbbVie Inc. by 5.5% during the 2nd quarter, now owning 83,810 shares valued at approximately $15.56 million.
• AbbVie recently announced a quarterly dividend of $1.64 per share, with a yield of 3.0%, payable on November 14th to investors of record on October 15th.
• Analysts have varied opinions on AbbVie, with price targets ranging from $214.00 to $260.00, reflecting a generally positive outlook for the company's stock.

Gradient Investments LLC grew its holdings in shares of AbbVie Inc. (NYSE:ABBV - Free Report) by 5.5% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 83,810 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 4,369 shares during the period. Gradient Investments LLC's holdings in AbbVie were worth $15,557,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Brighton Jones LLC raised its holdings in AbbVie by 17.4% in the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 22,912 shares of the company's stock worth $4,072,000 after acquiring an additional 3,401 shares during the last quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC raised its holdings in AbbVie by 72.7% in the 4th quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC now owns 7,279 shares of the company's stock worth $1,294,000 after acquiring an additional 3,064 shares during the last quarter. Siemens Fonds Invest GmbH raised its holdings in AbbVie by 197.6% in the 4th quarter. Siemens Fonds Invest GmbH now owns 179,440 shares of the company's stock worth $32,000 after acquiring an additional 119,141 shares during the last quarter. Strategic Wealth Partners Ltd. raised its holdings in AbbVie by 11.7% in the 4th quarter. Strategic Wealth Partners Ltd. now owns 41,550 shares of the company's stock worth $8,038,000 after acquiring an additional 4,343 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Strategic Global Advisors LLC raised its holdings in AbbVie by 18.8% in the 4th quarter. Strategic Global Advisors LLC now owns 24,372 shares of the company's stock worth $4,331,000 after acquiring an additional 3,864 shares during the last quarter. 70.23% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

AbbVie Stock Performance

AbbVie stock opened at $218.40 on Monday. 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 $221.76. The firm has a market capitalization of $385.82 billion, a P/E ratio of 104.00, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.40 and a beta of 0.53. The company's 50-day moving average is $200.25 and its 200 day moving average is $194.45.

AbbVie (NYSE:ABBV - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data 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 during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $14.93 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.65 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 6.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts forecast that AbbVie Inc. will post 12.31 EPS for the current year.

AbbVie Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 14th. Investors of record on Wednesday, October 15th will be given a $1.64 dividend. This represents a $6.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, October 15th. AbbVie's dividend payout ratio is 312.38%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have commented on the stock. Daiwa Capital Markets raised shares of AbbVie from a "neutral" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $214.00 target price for the company in a research report on Thursday, August 7th. Daiwa America raised shares of AbbVie from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, August 7th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on shares of AbbVie from $240.00 to $260.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of AbbVie from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, May 22nd. Finally, Piper Sandler began coverage on shares of AbbVie in a report on Tuesday, August 12th. They issued an "overweight" rating and a $231.00 target price for the company. Four 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. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $217.10.

Insider Transactions at AbbVie

In related news, EVP Nicholas Donoghoe sold 13,295 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $198.51, for a total value of $2,639,190.45. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 58,247 shares of the company's stock, valued at $11,562,611.97. This represents a 18.58% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Azita Saleki-Gerhardt sold 42,370 shares of the 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 completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 177,292 shares in the company, valued at $35,178,278.64. This trade represents a 19.29% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.08% of the company's stock.

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.

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