Pacer Advisors Inc. Sells 17,590 Shares of AbbVie Inc. (NYSE:ABBV)

Key Points

• Pacer Advisors Inc. reduced its holdings in AbbVie Inc. by 4.5%, now owning 370,412 shares valued at approximately $77.61 million.
• Several large investors, including Norges Bank and GAMMA Investing LLC, have significantly increased their stakes in AbbVie, reflecting strong institutional interest in the stock.
• AbbVie reported a net margin of 7.31% and a quarterly revenue of $13.34 billion, exceeding analyst estimates, with an earnings per share (EPS) of $2.46 for the quarter.

Pacer Advisors Inc. reduced its stake in AbbVie Inc. (NYSE:ABBV - Free Report) by 4.5% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 370,412 shares of the company's stock after selling 17,590 shares during the quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc.'s holdings in AbbVie were worth $77,609,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Crestline Management LP grew its stake in shares of AbbVie by 438.4% during the 4th quarter. Crestline Management LP now owns 35,311 shares of the company's stock worth $6,275,000 after acquiring an additional 28,753 shares during the period. Narus Financial Partners LLC grew its stake in shares of AbbVie by 25.3% during the 1st quarter. Narus Financial Partners LLC now owns 1,988 shares of the company's stock worth $417,000 after acquiring an additional 401 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its stake in shares of AbbVie by 1.2% during the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 9,367,162 shares of the company's stock worth $1,664,489,000 after acquiring an additional 108,993 shares during the period. Quantbot Technologies LP boosted its stake in AbbVie by 35.8% in the 4th quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP now owns 1,047 shares of the company's stock worth $186,000 after purchasing an additional 276 shares during the period. Finally, AXA S.A. boosted its stake in AbbVie by 14.8% in the 4th quarter. AXA S.A. now owns 971,893 shares of the company's stock worth $172,705,000 after purchasing an additional 125,568 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 70.23% of the company's stock.

AbbVie Price Performance

NYSE:ABBV traded up $3.78 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $192.30. The stock had a trading volume of 2,709,169 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,828,040. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $187.68 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $189.94. The stock has a market capitalization of $339.68 billion, a P/E ratio of 81.81, a P/E/G ratio of 1.25 and a beta of 0.48. AbbVie Inc. has a one year low of $163.81 and a one year high of $218.66. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 44.14, a quick ratio of 0.64 and a current ratio of 0.76.

AbbVie (NYSE:ABBV - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Friday, April 25th. The company reported $2.46 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.40 by $0.06. The company had revenue of $13.34 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $12.91 billion. AbbVie had a return on equity of 412.03% and a net margin of 7.31%. AbbVie's quarterly revenue was up 8.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.31 EPS. As a group, analysts expect that AbbVie Inc. will post 12.31 earnings per share for the current year.

AbbVie Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, July 15th will be given a $1.64 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, July 15th. This represents a $6.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.41%. AbbVie's payout ratio is 279.15%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ABBV has been the subject of several analyst reports. The Goldman Sachs Group restated a "neutral" rating and issued a $194.00 target price on shares of AbbVie in a research note on Tuesday, April 8th. Cantor Fitzgerald initiated coverage on AbbVie in a research note on Tuesday, April 22nd. They issued an "overweight" rating and a $210.00 target price for the company. Wall Street Zen downgraded AbbVie from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 22nd. Evercore ISI raised their target price on AbbVie from $204.00 to $205.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, April 28th. Finally, Citigroup raised their target price on AbbVie to $205.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 11th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have assigned a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, AbbVie has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $211.29.

AbbVie 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.