Migdal Insurance & Financial Holdings Ltd. Sells 318,117 Shares of AbbVie Inc. $ABBV

Key Points

• Migdal Insurance & Financial Holdings cut its AbbVie stake by 56.5%, selling 318,117 shares in the third quarter and retaining 244,444 shares worth about $63.9 million.
• Analysts maintain a “Moderate Buy” consensus with an average price target of $297.46. AbbVie also beat quarterly earnings and revenue estimates, while immunology sales grew 16.6%, led by Skyrizi and Rinvoq.
• AbbVie raised its quarterly dividend from $1.73 to $1.82 per share, equivalent to $7.28 annually and a 2.5% yield.

Migdal Insurance & Financial Holdings Ltd. cut its stake in shares of AbbVie Inc. (NYSE:ABBV - Free Report) by 56.5% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 244,444 shares of the company's stock after selling 318,117 shares during the period. Migdal Insurance & Financial Holdings Ltd.'s holdings in AbbVie were worth $63,944,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of ABBV. Ranch Capital Advisors Inc. increased its position in AbbVie by 37.0% during the first quarter. Ranch Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 14,888 shares of the company's stock worth $3,238,000 after buying an additional 4,017 shares during the last quarter. Capital Advisors Inc. OK raised its stake in AbbVie by 11.2% in the second quarter. Capital Advisors Inc. OK now owns 447,129 shares of the company's stock valued at $112,516,000 after buying an additional 45,132 shares during the period. Danica Pension Livsforsikringsaktieselskab acquired a new stake in shares of AbbVie in the second quarter valued at approximately $23,557,000. State Street Corp lifted its position in shares of AbbVie by 1.7% in the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 82,596,748 shares of the company's stock valued at $20,784,646,000 after buying an additional 1,379,232 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wedge Capital Management L L P NC boosted its stake in shares of AbbVie by 7.5% during the 2nd quarter. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC now owns 134,579 shares of the company's stock worth $33,865,000 after acquiring an additional 9,380 shares during the period. 70.23% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Jeffrey Stewart sold 40,619 shares of AbbVie stock in a transaction on Monday, November 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $293.60, for a total transaction of $11,925,738.40. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 83,171 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $24,419,005.60. This trade represents a 32.81% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.06% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have commented on the stock. Guggenheim lifted their price objective on shares of AbbVie from $288.00 to $322.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, November 2nd. Wolfe Research raised shares of AbbVie from a "peer perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and increased their price objective for the company from $235.00 to $300.00 in a research report on Thursday, August 13th. Scotiabank increased their price objective on shares of AbbVie from $280.00 to $320.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 6th. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on shares of AbbVie from $310.00 to $346.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, November 2nd. Finally, Barclays lifted their target price on shares of AbbVie from $300.00 to $325.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, October 21st. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-two have given a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $297.46.

Key Headlines Impacting AbbVie

Investors following ABBV have been watching these headlines:

• Positive Sentiment: AbbVie’s immunology sales grew 16.6% in the third quarter, led by Skyrizi and Rinvoq. Their momentum is helping lift sales expectations for 2026, although Humira continues to decline. How Did AbbVie’s Immunology Franchise Fare in Q3?
• Positive Sentiment: AbbVie licensed Nxera Pharma’s EP4 agonist program for inflammatory bowel disease. The deal adds a potential pipeline asset, though its milestones depend on future development and other conditions. AbbVie Deal Altering the Investment Case for Nxera Pharma
• Negative Sentiment: EVP Jeffrey Stewart sold 40,619 shares for about $11.9 million, reducing his direct holdings by 32.81%. The sale could weigh on sentiment, though the filing did not state a reason. AbbVie EVP Sells $11,925,738.40 in Stock

AbbVie Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE ABBV traded up $0.73 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $295.18. 3,259,920 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 5,279,493. The firm has a market capitalization of $521.76 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 50.81, a P/E/G ratio of 1.34 and a beta of 0.20. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $275.51 and its 200 day simple moving average is $240.91. AbbVie Inc. has a 52 week low of $190.75 and a 52 week high of $302.93.

AbbVie (NYSE:ABBV - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, October 30th. The company reported $3.82 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.73 by $0.09. The business had revenue of $17.40 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $17.32 billion. AbbVie had a negative return on equity of 450.55% and a net margin of 15.67%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 10.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.86 EPS. Research analysts predict that AbbVie Inc. will post 13.98 EPS for the current fiscal year.

AbbVie Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, February 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 15th will be given a dividend of $1.82 per share. This represents a $7.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.5%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 15th. This is a positive change from AbbVie's previous quarterly dividend of $1.73. AbbVie's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 125.30%.

AbbVie Profile

AbbVie is a biopharmaceutical company that discovers, develops and markets medicines for a range of serious health conditions. Its research and product portfolio spans immunology, oncology, neuroscience and other therapeutic areas. Key products include the immunology medicines Skyrizi and Rinvoq, cancer treatments such as Imbruvica and Venclexta, and neuroscience therapies including Botox and Vraylar. Through its Allergan acquisition, AbbVie also offers aesthetics products such as Botox Cosmetic and Juvéderm.

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