IFM Investors Pty Ltd Raises Position in AbbVie Inc. $ABBV

Key Points

• IFM Investors Pty Ltd increased its stake in AbbVie Inc. by 1.1% during the first quarter, owning a total of 334,604 shares valued at approximately $70.1 million.
• A number of other large investors, including Vanguard Group Inc. and Goldman Sachs Group Inc., have also boosted their holdings in AbbVie, indicating strong institutional interest.
• AbbVie recently announced a quarterly dividend of $1.64 per share, with an annualized yield of 3.1% and a payout ratio of 312.38% as of the latest filing.

IFM Investors Pty Ltd raised its stake in AbbVie Inc. (NYSE:ABBV - Free Report) by 1.1% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 334,604 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 3,741 shares during the period. AbbVie makes up 0.8% of IFM Investors Pty Ltd's portfolio, making the stock its 21st largest holding. IFM Investors Pty Ltd's holdings in AbbVie were worth $70,106,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of AbbVie by 0.5% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 173,917,865 shares of the company's stock worth $36,439,271,000 after purchasing an additional 845,787 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp grew its position in shares of AbbVie by 0.9% in the first quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 22,013,920 shares of the company's stock valued at $4,612,357,000 after purchasing an additional 189,294 shares during the period. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of AbbVie by 31.6% in the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 14,646,908 shares of the company's stock worth $3,068,820,000 after buying an additional 3,519,187 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC raised its stake in AbbVie by 5.9% during the first quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 12,771,854 shares of the company's stock worth $2,675,959,000 after purchasing an additional 713,148 shares during the period. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC raised its stake in shares of AbbVie by 18.5% in the 4th quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 12,058,706 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,142,832,000 after acquiring an additional 1,882,780 shares during the period. 70.23% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have commented on ABBV shares. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on shares of AbbVie from $250.00 to $255.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, August 1st. Citigroup raised their price target on shares of AbbVie to $205.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 11th. Daiwa Capital Markets raised shares of AbbVie from a "neutral" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $214.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Thursday, August 7th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of AbbVie from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 22nd. Finally, Piper Sandler started coverage on shares of AbbVie in a report on Tuesday, August 12th. They issued an "overweight" rating and a $231.00 price objective for the company. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have issued a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $214.95.

Insider Activity at AbbVie

In other AbbVie news, EVP Nicholas Donoghoe sold 13,295 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $198.51, for a total value of $2,639,190.45. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 58,247 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,562,611.97. The trade was a 18.58% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Azita Saleki-Gerhardt sold 42,370 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $198.42, for a total value of $8,407,055.40. Following the transaction, 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 position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.08% of the company's stock.

AbbVie Stock Up 0.3%

Shares of AbbVie stock opened at $210.46 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $371.79 billion, a P/E ratio of 100.22, a PEG 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. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $198.64 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $194.25. AbbVie Inc. has a 12-month low of $163.81 and a 12-month high of $218.66.

AbbVie (NYSE:ABBV - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 31st. The company reported $2.97 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.24 by ($0.27). AbbVie had a return on equity of 699.66% and a net margin of 6.45%.The company had revenue of $15.42 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.93 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $2.65 earnings per share. The business's revenue was up 6.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts expect that AbbVie Inc. will post 12.31 earnings per share for the current year.

AbbVie Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed 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 is Wednesday, October 15th. AbbVie's payout ratio is 312.38%.

AbbVie Company Profile

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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