Wendell David Associates Inc. Sells 2,106 Shares of AbbVie Inc. $ABBV

Key Points

• Wendell David Associates Inc. has reduced its position in AbbVie Inc. by 2.1%, selling 2,106 shares and now holds 99,763 shares, valued at approximately $18.5 million.
• AbbVie's recent earnings report for the quarter showed EPS of $2.97, falling short of analysts' expectations, although revenue increased by 6.6% year-on-year to $15.42 billion.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $1.64, representing an annualized yield of 2.9%, with the record date set for October 15th.

Wendell David Associates Inc. reduced its position in shares of AbbVie Inc. (NYSE:ABBV - Free Report) by 2.1% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 99,763 shares of the company's stock after selling 2,106 shares during the quarter. AbbVie accounts for approximately 1.9% of Wendell David Associates Inc.'s investment portfolio, making the stock its 15th biggest holding. Wendell David Associates Inc.'s holdings in AbbVie were worth $18,518,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Conning Inc. raised its position in shares of AbbVie by 7.1% in the second quarter. Conning Inc. now owns 191,023 shares of the company's stock valued at $35,458,000 after purchasing an additional 12,690 shares during the period. Dohj LLC raised its position in shares of AbbVie by 41.8% in the second quarter. Dohj LLC now owns 4,529 shares of the company's stock valued at $802,000 after purchasing an additional 1,335 shares during the period. First Hawaiian Bank grew its stake in shares of AbbVie by 0.8% in the second quarter. First Hawaiian Bank now owns 7,556 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,403,000 after acquiring an additional 60 shares in the last quarter. Narus Financial Partners LLC grew its stake in shares of AbbVie by 25.3% in the first quarter. Narus Financial Partners LLC now owns 1,988 shares of the company's stock valued at $417,000 after acquiring an additional 401 shares in the last quarter. Finally, BankPlus Trust Department grew its stake in shares of AbbVie by 3.3% in the second quarter. BankPlus Trust Department now owns 27,113 shares of the company's stock valued at $5,033,000 after acquiring an additional 855 shares in the last quarter. 70.23% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

AbbVie Stock Up 1.2%

Shares of NYSE ABBV opened at $229.66 on Friday. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $217.91 and a 200 day simple moving average of $197.55. The firm has a market cap of $405.71 billion, a PE ratio of 109.36, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.43 and a beta of 0.51. AbbVie Inc. has a 1 year low of $163.81 and a 1 year high of $244.81. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 44.14, a current ratio of 0.74 and a quick ratio of 0.61.

AbbVie (NYSE:ABBV - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 31st. The company reported $2.97 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $3.24 by ($0.27). The business had revenue of $15.42 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $14.93 billion. AbbVie had a net margin of 6.45% and a return on equity of 699.66%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 6.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $2.65 EPS. On average, research analysts forecast that AbbVie Inc. will post 12.31 EPS for the current year.

AbbVie Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 14th. Investors of record on Wednesday, October 15th will be issued a $1.64 dividend. This represents a $6.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.9%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, October 15th. AbbVie's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 312.38%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Azita Saleki-Gerhardt sold 42,370 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $198.42, for a total value of $8,407,055.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 177,292 shares in the company, valued at $35,178,278.64. This trade represents a 19.29% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Nicholas Donoghoe sold 13,295 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $198.51, for a total transaction of $2,639,190.45. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 58,247 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $11,562,611.97. This trade represents a 18.58% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.25% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts recently commented on the stock. Raymond James Financial restated an "outperform" rating and issued a $250.00 price target (up from $236.00) on shares of AbbVie in a research note on Friday. Berenberg Bank upgraded shares of AbbVie from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and upped their price target for the company from $170.00 to $270.00 in a research note on Wednesday, September 17th. Hsbc Global Res downgraded shares of AbbVie from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 1st. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of AbbVie from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, October 11th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets increased their price objective on shares of AbbVie from $215.00 to $240.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, September 12th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have issued a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $234.05.

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.

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