Zacks Investment Management Reduces Stock Holdings in AbbVie Inc. (NYSE:ABBV)

Zacks Investment Management trimmed its holdings in shares of AbbVie Inc. (NYSE:ABBV - Free Report) by 11.3% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 756,861 shares of the company's stock after selling 96,346 shares during the period. AbbVie comprises approximately 1.2% of Zacks Investment Management's portfolio, making the stock its 16th largest position. Zacks Investment Management's holdings in AbbVie were worth $134,494,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Fiduciary Advisors Inc. bought a new position in shares of AbbVie during the fourth quarter valued at about $29,000. EnRich Financial Partners LLC lifted its holdings in AbbVie by 196.4% in the 4th quarter. EnRich Financial Partners LLC now owns 166 shares of the company's stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 110 shares during the period. Promus Capital LLC bought a new stake in shares of AbbVie in the 4th quarter worth approximately $30,000. Bradley & Co. Private Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of AbbVie during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Finally, Prudent Man Investment Management Inc. bought a new stake in AbbVie in the fourth quarter valued at $32,000. 70.23% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at AbbVie

In related news, SVP Kevin K. Buckbee sold 18,944 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $203.41, for a total transaction of $3,853,399.04. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 11,496 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,338,401.36. This trade represents a 62.23 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Jeffrey Ryan Stewart sold 58,832 shares of the business's 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 completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 53,234 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,183,398.72. The trade was a 52.50 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 113,471 shares of company stock valued at $23,426,451 over the last 90 days. Company insiders own 0.25% of the company's stock.

AbbVie Stock Performance

AbbVie stock traded up $1.10 during trading on Friday, reaching $172.78. The company had a trading volume of 8,474,425 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,005,419. The firm has a market capitalization of $305.64 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 71.99, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.62 and a beta of 0.55. 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 firm's 50-day simple moving average is $198.47 and its 200 day simple moving average is $187.76. AbbVie Inc. has a 52 week low of $153.58 and a 52 week high of $218.66.

AbbVie (NYSE:ABBV - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 31st. The company reported $2.16 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.98 by ($0.82). AbbVie had a return on equity of 296.28% and a net margin of 7.59%. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $2.79 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts forecast that AbbVie Inc. will post 12.31 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

AbbVie Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, April 15th will be given a $1.64 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, April 15th. This represents a $6.56 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.80%. AbbVie's payout ratio is 273.33%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently commented on ABBV. Citigroup raised their target price on shares of AbbVie from $205.00 to $215.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Guggenheim reissued a "buy" rating and set a $214.00 price objective on shares of AbbVie in a research note on Thursday. Bank of America raised their price target on AbbVie from $200.00 to $223.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, March 4th. Raymond James restated an "outperform" rating and set a $220.00 price objective (up from $218.00) on shares of AbbVie in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a "neutral" rating and set a $194.00 price target on shares of AbbVie in a report on Tuesday, April 8th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have issued a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $210.71.

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.