AbbVie Inc. (NYSE:ABBV) Shares Sold by ST. Nicholas Private Asset Management Inc.

Key Points

• ST. Nicholas Private Asset Management Inc. has reduced its stake in AbbVie Inc. by 4.5%, now holding 36,460 shares, which constitutes approximately 7.2% of its portfolio, making it the firm's 4th largest position.
• AbbVie recently declared a quarterly dividend of $1.64, equating to a yield of 3.3%, with a dividend payout ratio of 312.38%.
• The company's quarterly earnings report showed earnings per share of $2.97, which fell short of analysts' expectations, despite revenue exceeding forecasts at $15.42 billion.

ST. Nicholas Private Asset Management Inc. trimmed its position in AbbVie Inc. (NYSE:ABBV - Free Report) by 4.5% in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 36,460 shares of the company's stock after selling 1,707 shares during the quarter. AbbVie accounts for 7.2% of ST. Nicholas Private Asset Management Inc.'s portfolio, making the stock its 4th largest position. ST. Nicholas Private Asset Management Inc.'s holdings in AbbVie were worth $7,639,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also modified their holdings of ABBV. Brighton Jones LLC raised its stake in AbbVie by 17.4% during the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 22,912 shares of the company's stock worth $4,072,000 after acquiring an additional 3,401 shares in the last quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC boosted its holdings in AbbVie by 72.7% in the fourth quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC now owns 7,279 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,294,000 after acquiring an additional 3,064 shares during the last quarter. Azimuth Capital Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in AbbVie by 6.3% in the fourth quarter. Azimuth Capital Investment Management LLC now owns 107,759 shares of the company's stock valued at $19,149,000 after acquiring an additional 6,388 shares during the last quarter. DRW Securities LLC bought a new position in AbbVie in the fourth quarter valued at about $798,000. Finally, F M Investments LLC boosted its holdings in AbbVie by 13.9% in the fourth quarter. F M Investments LLC now owns 59,371 shares of the company's stock valued at $10,550,000 after acquiring an additional 7,226 shares during the last quarter. 70.23% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

AbbVie Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE ABBV traded down $0.76 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $198.10. 4,101,321 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 5,210,216. The company has a quick ratio of 0.64, a current ratio of 0.74 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 44.14. AbbVie Inc. has a 12 month low of $163.81 and a 12 month high of $218.66. The company's 50 day moving average price is $189.65 and its 200 day moving average price is $191.06. The firm has a market capitalization of $349.96 billion, a PE ratio of 94.33, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.28 and a beta of 0.50.

AbbVie (NYSE:ABBV - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The company reported $2.97 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 business had revenue of $15.42 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $14.93 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $2.65 earnings per share. The business's revenue was up 6.6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts predict that AbbVie Inc. will post 12.31 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

AbbVie Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, July 15th will be issued a $1.64 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, July 15th. This represents a $6.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.3%. AbbVie's payout ratio is currently 312.38%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other AbbVie news, EVP Nicholas Donoghoe sold 13,295 shares of AbbVie stock in a transaction 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 completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 58,247 shares of the company's stock, valued at $11,562,611.97. The trade was a 18.58% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 0.25% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. Cantor Fitzgerald assumed coverage on AbbVie in a report on Tuesday, April 22nd. They issued an "overweight" rating and a $210.00 price target on the stock. Daiwa America upgraded AbbVie from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Thursday. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on AbbVie from $250.00 to $255.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, August 1st. Citigroup raised their target price on AbbVie to $205.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, June 11th. Finally, Bank of America raised their target price on AbbVie to $204.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, June 9th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eighteen have given a buy rating and four have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $214.43.

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.