AbbVie Inc. (NYSE:ABBV) Shares Sold by Letko Brosseau & Associates Inc.

Letko Brosseau & Associates Inc. cut its holdings in shares of AbbVie Inc. (NYSE:ABBV - Free Report) by 0.7% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 314,459 shares of the company's stock after selling 2,375 shares during the period. Letko Brosseau & Associates Inc.'s holdings in AbbVie were worth $55,879,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Blue Bell Private Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in AbbVie by 30.4% in the fourth quarter. Blue Bell Private Wealth Management LLC now owns 223 shares of the company's stock valued at $40,000 after buying an additional 52 shares during the period. Steel Grove Capital Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in AbbVie by 1.7% in the fourth quarter. Steel Grove Capital Advisors LLC now owns 3,110 shares of the company's stock valued at $553,000 after buying an additional 52 shares during the period. Peninsula Wealth LLC lifted its holdings in AbbVie by 4.1% in the fourth quarter. Peninsula Wealth LLC now owns 1,360 shares of the company's stock valued at $242,000 after buying an additional 54 shares during the period. Physicians Financial Services Inc. lifted its holdings in AbbVie by 0.5% in the fourth quarter. Physicians Financial Services Inc. now owns 12,150 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,159,000 after buying an additional 55 shares during the period. Finally, Armstrong Advisory Group Inc. increased its stake in AbbVie by 0.6% in the fourth quarter. Armstrong Advisory Group Inc. now owns 9,842 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,749,000 after purchasing an additional 58 shares in the last quarter. 70.23% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

AbbVie Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:ABBV traded down $10.70 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $177.30. 12,199,271 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 6,208,808. The company has a current ratio of 0.66, a quick ratio of 0.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 17.94. The business's fifty day moving average is $193.34 and its two-hundred day moving average is $187.23. AbbVie Inc. has a one year low of $153.58 and a one year high of $218.66. The stock has a market cap of $313.64 billion, a PE ratio of 73.88, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.62 and a beta of 0.56.

AbbVie (NYSE:ABBV - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, April 25th. The company reported $2.46 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.40 by $0.06. The company had revenue of $13.34 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $12.91 billion. AbbVie had a net margin of 7.59% and a return on equity of 296.28%. AbbVie's revenue was up 8.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.31 earnings per share. As a group, analysts predict that AbbVie Inc. will post 12.31 earnings per share for the current year.

AbbVie Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, April 15th will be issued a $1.64 dividend. This represents a $6.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.70%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 15th. AbbVie's dividend payout ratio is currently 279.15%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on ABBV shares. Erste Group Bank raised shares of AbbVie to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Monday, March 17th. The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a "neutral" rating and set a $194.00 target price on shares of AbbVie in a research report on Tuesday, April 8th. Cantor Fitzgerald initiated coverage on shares of AbbVie in a research report on Tuesday, April 22nd. They set an "overweight" rating and a $210.00 target price for the company. UBS Group upped their price objective on shares of AbbVie from $181.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, Bank of America upped their price objective on shares of AbbVie from $200.00 to $223.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 4th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have given a buy rating and four have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, AbbVie presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $210.95.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Timothy J. Richmond sold 29,917 shares of AbbVie stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $202.90, for a total value of $6,070,159.30. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 44,284 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $8,985,223.60. This trade represents a 40.32% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Jeffrey Ryan Stewart sold 58,832 shares of AbbVie stock in a transaction on Monday, March 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $210.08, for a total transaction of $12,359,426.56. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 53,234 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,183,398.72. This trade represents a 52.50% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 113,471 shares of company stock worth $23,426,451. Corporate insiders own 0.25% of the company's stock.

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.