Legal & General Group Plc Purchases New Shares in AbbVie Inc. $ABBV

Key Points

• Legal & General acquired a major AbbVie stake: The firm purchased 11.55 million shares worth approximately $2.91 billion, making AbbVie its 23rd-largest holding and representing about 0.65% of AbbVie’s outstanding stock. Institutional investors collectively own 70.23% of the company.
• Analysts remain bullish: AbbVie has a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average price target of $275.95, while several firms recently raised their targets to as high as $303.
• Growth opportunities face Humira pressure: Skyrizi and Rinvoq sales rose 24% and 25%, respectively, and the company’s pipeline gained from the $10.9 billion Apogee acquisition and positive etentamig trial results. However, falling Humira revenue and near-term dilution from the acquisition remain key risks.

Legal & General Group Plc acquired a new stake in shares of AbbVie Inc. (NYSE:ABBV - Free Report) during the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund acquired 11,548,053 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,905,952,000. AbbVie accounts for about 0.6% of Legal & General Group Plc's investment portfolio, making the stock its 23rd biggest holding. Legal & General Group Plc owned approximately 0.65% of AbbVie at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company bought a new stake in shares of AbbVie during the 2nd quarter valued at about $655,268,000. Kelly Lawrence W & Associates Inc. CA bought a new position in AbbVie in the second quarter worth about $1,961,000. Jones Financial Companies Lllp bought a new position in AbbVie in the second quarter worth about $3,790,000. Trajan Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in AbbVie in the second quarter worth about $9,448,000. Finally, Van Hulzen Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in AbbVie during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $11,398,000. 70.23% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

ABBV has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Piper Sandler upped their target price on AbbVie from $298.00 to $303.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, August 20th. Barclays lifted their price target on AbbVie from $275.00 to $300.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 29th. Cantor Fitzgerald upped their price target on AbbVie from $265.00 to $285.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, August 3rd. BMO Capital Markets increased their price objective on AbbVie from $258.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday, July 13th. Finally, Evercore set a $235.00 price objective on AbbVie in a research report on Friday, May 15th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nineteen have given a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $275.95.

AbbVie News Roundup

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.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Nicholas Donoghoe sold 32,710 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 sale, the executive vice president owned 74,430 shares in the company, valued at $18,607,500. This represents a 30.53% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.06% of the company's stock.

AbbVie Stock Down 1.5%

Shares of ABBV opened at $256.27 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $452.78 billion, a P/E ratio of 72.39, a P/E/G ratio of 1.18 and a beta of 0.29. The business's 50 day moving average price is $254.66 and its 200-day moving average price is $230.06. AbbVie Inc. has a 52 week low of $190.75 and a 52 week high of $267.47.

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

AbbVie Announces Dividend

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

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.

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