WCG Wealth Advisors LLC Buys Shares of 17,087 AbbVie Inc. $ABBV

Key Points

• WCG Wealth Advisors initiated a new position in AbbVie during the fourth quarter, buying 17,087 shares worth about $3.9 million.
• Institutional ownership remains high, with hedge funds and other investors controlling 70.23% of AbbVie’s shares, while several firms boosted their stakes in recent quarters.
• Analysts remain constructive on the stock: AbbVie has a Moderate Buy consensus rating and an average price target of $253.43, alongside recent bullish ratings and target increases.

WCG Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in AbbVie Inc. (NYSE:ABBV - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor bought 17,087 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,904,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of AbbVie by 0.3% in the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 177,747,261 shares of the company's stock valued at $41,155,601,000 after purchasing an additional 448,554 shares in the last quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board boosted its stake in shares of AbbVie by 17.0% during the third quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 1,044,690 shares of the company's stock valued at $241,888,000 after purchasing an additional 151,644 shares in the last quarter. Thornburg Investment Management Inc. increased its holdings in AbbVie by 25.5% during the third quarter. Thornburg Investment Management Inc. now owns 401,760 shares of the company's stock valued at $93,024,000 after buying an additional 81,625 shares during the period. Channing Capital Management LLC raised its stake in AbbVie by 10.5% in the third quarter. Channing Capital Management LLC now owns 55,647 shares of the company's stock worth $12,885,000 after buying an additional 5,302 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Procyon Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in AbbVie by 19.9% during the fourth quarter. Procyon Advisors LLC now owns 32,752 shares of the company's stock worth $7,484,000 after buying an additional 5,427 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 70.23% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have recently commented on ABBV shares. BMO Capital Markets reissued an "outperform" rating on shares of AbbVie in a research report on Monday, March 9th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of AbbVie from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Saturday, May 30th. DZ Bank raised AbbVie from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. William Blair restated an "outperform" rating on shares of AbbVie in a research note on Monday, March 9th. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group upped their target price on AbbVie from $262.00 to $265.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have assigned a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $253.43.

More AbbVie News

Here are the key news stories impacting AbbVie this week:

• Positive Sentiment: AbbVie’s ovarian cancer drug Elahere received a green light from the UK’s NHS, expanding access in a hard-to-treat cancer market and reinforcing the drug’s commercial potential. British drug-cost watchdog recommends use of AbbVie's ovarian cancer therapy
• Positive Sentiment: AbbVie also won European approval for Aquipta as a migraine treatment, adding another approved indication and supporting future sales growth for its neurology franchise. AbbVie receives EC approval for Aquipta to treat migraine
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst-style coverage highlighted AbbVie as a “cheap stock” and a potentially undervalued name, which can support investor sentiment around the stock’s longer-term upside. 5 Best Cheap Stocks to Buy for Beginners
• Neutral Sentiment: AbbVie completed several study updates, including a real-world upadacitinib study in China and a bioavailability study for ABBV-932, which are supportive for the pipeline but not immediate commercial catalysts. AbbVie Completes Real World Upadacitinib Study in China AbbVie Advances ABBV-932 With Completed Bioavailability Study
• Negative Sentiment: AbbVie ended an early lung-cancer trial for ABBV-647, which slightly trims one oncology upside avenue, even though it does not change the broader growth story. AbbVie Ends Early Lung Cancer Trial for ABBV-647

AbbVie Stock Performance

NYSE:ABBV opened at $224.81 on Friday. The firm's fifty day moving average is $209.43 and its two-hundred day moving average is $219.30. The firm has a market cap of $397.19 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 110.74, a PEG ratio of 0.66 and a beta of 0.32. AbbVie Inc. has a one year low of $181.73 and a one year high of $244.81.

AbbVie (NYSE:ABBV - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 29th. The company reported $2.65 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.59 by $0.06. The business had revenue of $15 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.72 billion. AbbVie had a negative return on equity of 576.45% and a net margin of 5.79%.The company's revenue was up 12.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $2.46 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts predict that AbbVie Inc. will post 14.3 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding ABBV? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for AbbVie Inc. (NYSE:ABBV - Free Report).

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.