Patten & Patten Inc. TN Trims Position in AbbVie Inc. $ABBV

Key Points

• Patten & Patten Inc. TN reduced its AbbVie stake by 4.8% in the fourth quarter, selling 8,270 shares and leaving it with 162,855 shares valued at about $37.2 million.
• AbbVie posted solid quarterly results, with EPS of $2.65 beating estimates and revenue of $15 billion topping expectations; revenue rose 12.4% year over year. The company also maintained a quarterly dividend of $1.73 per share, or $6.92 annually.
• Analyst sentiment remains generally positive, with multiple firms reiterating or initiating overweight/buy ratings and a consensus price target of $252.90. However, the stock has recently traded below key moving averages, signaling some investor caution.

Patten & Patten Inc. TN trimmed its holdings in shares of AbbVie Inc. (NYSE:ABBV - Free Report) by 4.8% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 162,855 shares of the company's stock after selling 8,270 shares during the quarter. AbbVie accounts for about 2.2% of Patten & Patten Inc. TN's portfolio, making the stock its 7th largest position. Patten & Patten Inc. TN's holdings in AbbVie were worth $37,211,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in AbbVie by 1.7% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 180,779,699 shares of the company's stock worth $41,306,353,000 after acquiring an additional 3,032,438 shares during the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc grew its holdings in AbbVie by 4.3% during the 3rd quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 12,004,084 shares of the company's stock worth $2,779,426,000 after acquiring an additional 493,420 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its holdings in AbbVie by 457.4% during the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 10,536,901 shares of the company's stock worth $2,439,714,000 after acquiring an additional 8,646,424 shares during the last quarter. Amundi grew its holdings in AbbVie by 15.6% during the 3rd quarter. Amundi now owns 10,508,317 shares of the company's stock worth $2,418,909,000 after acquiring an additional 1,414,621 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Ameriprise Financial Inc. grew its holdings in AbbVie by 4.4% during the 3rd quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 9,675,877 shares of the company's stock worth $2,241,363,000 after acquiring an additional 408,426 shares during the last quarter. 70.23% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

AbbVie Stock Performance

NYSE:ABBV opened at $201.24 on Friday. AbbVie Inc. has a 52 week low of $176.57 and a 52 week high of $244.81. The firm's fifty day moving average is $213.18 and its 200-day moving average is $221.00. The firm has a market cap of $355.83 billion, a P/E ratio of 99.13, a P/E/G ratio of 0.70 and a beta of 0.32.

AbbVie (NYSE:ABBV - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The company reported $2.65 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.59 by $0.06. AbbVie had a net margin of 5.79% and a negative return on equity of 911.57%. The company had revenue of $15 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $14.72 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $2.46 EPS. AbbVie's quarterly revenue was up 12.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that AbbVie Inc. will post 14.3 earnings per share for the current year.

AbbVie Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 15th. Investors of record on Wednesday, April 15th will be given a dividend of $1.73 per share. This represents a $6.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.4%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 15th. AbbVie's payout ratio is presently 340.89%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Perry C. Siatis sold 22,381 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $230.00, for a total transaction of $5,147,630.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 38,137 shares in the company, valued at $8,771,510. The trade was a 36.98% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, SVP David Ryan Purdue sold 5,230 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $233.56, for a total transaction of $1,221,518.80. Following the transaction, the senior vice president owned 2,654 shares in the company, valued at $619,868.24. The trade was a 66.34% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. 0.06% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Key Stories Impacting AbbVie

Here are the key news stories impacting AbbVie this week:

• Positive Sentiment: AbbVie continued to draw bullish attention after reporting strong first-quarter results, with revenue and earnings coming in ahead of expectations and showing that growth is extending beyond Humira into newer drugs like Skyrizi and Rinvoq. AbbVie Delivers Strong Q1 Earnings Beyond Humira. This Dividend King Still Shines.
• Positive Sentiment: AbbVie completed an early safety study for ABBV-142, which may improve investor confidence in the company’s pipeline and future oncology growth prospects. AbbVie Completes Early Safety Study for ABBV-142, Nudging Pipeline Hopes Higher
• Positive Sentiment: AbbVie and adMare BioInnovations named RIME Therapeutics as a Biotech Innovators Award winner, reinforcing AbbVie’s efforts to support early-stage biotech innovation and build optionality around its pipeline ecosystem. AbbVie (ABBV), adMare BioInnovations Name RIME Therapeutics as Biotech Innovators Award Winner
• Positive Sentiment: Skyrizi ranked ahead of J&J’s Tremfya in April drug ad spending, signaling continued competitive momentum and heavy marketing support for one of AbbVie’s key growth brands. AbbVie’s Skyrizi beats out J&J’s Tremfya in April drug ad spending leaderboard
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst commentary and Q1 earnings-call recaps highlighted ongoing interest in AbbVie’s post-Humira growth strategy, but these pieces were mostly interpretive rather than new market-moving disclosures. 5 must-read analyst questions from AbbVie’s Q1 earnings call
• Neutral Sentiment: Coverage on SKYRIZI expansion and reimbursement progress in Canada suggests continued international adoption, but the article framed these as part of an already constructive longer-term thesis rather than a single new catalyst. Does Strong Q1 Results And SKYRIZI Expansion Reshape The Bull Case For AbbVie (ABBV)?
• Negative Sentiment: One relative headwind is that ABBV shares have recently traded below key moving averages, reflecting some investor caution even as fundamentals remain solid.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Cantor Fitzgerald restated an "overweight" rating and issued a $240.00 price target on shares of AbbVie in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and issued a $223.00 price objective on shares of AbbVie in a research note on Wednesday, January 28th. Piper Sandler reduced their price objective on shares of AbbVie from $299.00 to $294.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 23rd. Barclays began coverage on shares of AbbVie in a research note on Thursday, February 19th. They issued an "overweight" rating and a $275.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein reaffirmed a "market perform" rating on shares of AbbVie in a research note on Thursday, February 5th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have given a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $252.90.

AbbVie Company 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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