StockNews.com Downgrades AbbVie (NYSE:ABBV) to Buy

AbbVie (NYSE:ABBV - Get Free Report) was downgraded by equities research analysts at StockNews.com from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a report issued on Thursday.

A number of other equities research analysts have also recently commented on ABBV. Erste Group Bank raised shares of AbbVie to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Monday, March 17th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on AbbVie from $210.00 to $240.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. BMO Capital Markets upped their price target on AbbVie from $208.00 to $215.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Raymond James reissued an "outperform" rating and issued a $220.00 price objective (up previously from $218.00) on shares of AbbVie in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, Truist Financial upped their price objective on shares of AbbVie from $211.00 to $217.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eighteen have given a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $210.95.

AbbVie Stock Performance

Shares of AbbVie stock traded down $0.97 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $180.84. 620,171 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 6,237,762. The stock has a market capitalization of $319.43 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 75.35, a PEG ratio of 1.62 and a beta of 0.56. AbbVie has a 12-month low of $153.58 and a 12-month high of $218.66. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 17.94, a current ratio of 0.66 and a quick ratio of 0.55. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $189.64 and a 200-day simple moving average of $186.68.

AbbVie (NYSE:ABBV - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, April 25th. The company reported $2.46 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.40 by $0.06. The business had revenue of $13.34 billion during 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%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 8.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $2.31 earnings per share. Equities research analysts anticipate that AbbVie will post 12.31 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, SVP Kevin K. Buckbee sold 18,944 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $203.41, for a total value of $3,853,399.04. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 11,496 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,338,401.36. This represents a 62.23% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Timothy J. Richmond sold 29,917 shares of AbbVie stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $202.90, for a total transaction 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. The trade was a 40.32% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 107,693 shares of company stock worth $22,282,985. Corporate insiders own 0.25% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of AbbVie

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. TD Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of AbbVie by 82.9% during the 1st quarter. TD Capital Management LLC now owns 128 shares of the company's stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 58 shares during the last quarter. Fiduciary Advisors Inc. bought a new position in AbbVie during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. EnRich Financial Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of AbbVie by 196.4% during the fourth quarter. EnRich Financial Partners LLC now owns 166 shares of the company's stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 110 shares in the last quarter. Promus Capital LLC bought a new stake in shares of AbbVie in the 4th quarter worth approximately $30,000. Finally, Abound Financial LLC purchased a new stake in shares of AbbVie in the 1st quarter valued at $30,000. 70.23% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About AbbVie

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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