AbbVie Inc. $ABBV Stock Position Cut by Pictet Asset Management Holding SA

Pictet Asset Management Holding SA lowered its holdings in shares of AbbVie Inc. (NYSE:ABBV) by 13.3% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 788,026 shares of the company’s stock after selling 121,302 shares during the quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA’s holdings in AbbVie were worth $206,140,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Sierra Ocean LLC bought a new stake in shares of AbbVie during the third quarter worth $215,000. Verus Capital Partners LLC grew its holdings in shares of AbbVie by 0.5% in the third quarter. Verus Capital Partners LLC now owns 48,145 shares of the company’s stock worth $12,594,000 after purchasing an additional 216 shares during the last quarter. AlphaCentric Advisors LLC increased its stake in AbbVie by 1.9% in the 3rd quarter. AlphaCentric Advisors LLC now owns 3,683 shares of the company’s stock worth $963,000 after buying an additional 70 shares during the period. Abacus Wealth Partners LLC increased its stake in AbbVie by 9.5% in the 3rd quarter. Abacus Wealth Partners LLC now owns 8,795 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,301,000 after buying an additional 766 shares during the period. Finally, Asset Dedication LLC increased its stake in AbbVie by 1.7% in the 3rd quarter. Asset Dedication LLC now owns 9,158 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,396,000 after buying an additional 154 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 70.23% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on ABBV shares. Cantor Fitzgerald lifted their price objective on shares of AbbVie from $290.00 to $325.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, November 2nd. Citigroup upped their target price on shares of AbbVie from $230.00 to $260.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 15th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of AbbVie from $285.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 8th. Rothschild & Co Redburn lifted their price target on shares of AbbVie from $284.00 to $285.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 4th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price target on shares of AbbVie from $258.00 to $294.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, October 23rd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-two have issued a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, AbbVie currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $297.46.

Insider Activity at AbbVie

In other news, EVP Nicholas Donoghoe sold 32,710 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $250.00, for a total value of $8,177,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 74,430 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $18,607,500. This represents a 30.53% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.06% of the company’s stock.

AbbVie Trading Up 1.1%

Shares of AbbVie stock opened at $291.51 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $515.27 billion, a P/E ratio of 50.17, a P/E/G ratio of 1.32 and a beta of 0.20. AbbVie Inc. has a 12 month low of $190.75 and a 12 month high of $302.93. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $271.98 and its 200-day moving average price is $239.04.

AbbVie (NYSE:ABBV) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, October 30th. The company reported $3.82 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.73 by $0.09. AbbVie had a net margin of 15.67% and a negative return on equity of 450.55%. The company had revenue of $17.40 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $17.32 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.86 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts forecast that AbbVie Inc. will post 13.99 earnings per share for the current year.

AbbVie Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, February 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 15th will be issued a $1.82 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 15th. This represents a $7.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.5%. This is an increase from AbbVie’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.73. AbbVie’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 125.30%.

AbbVie News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting AbbVie this week:

• Positive Sentiment: AbbVie’s third-quarter results beat expectations, with revenue of $17.4 billion, and the company raised its full-year adjusted earnings outlook. The earnings report has strengthened the growth case for the shares. AbbVie stock climbs as Q3 earnings fuel growth case
• Positive Sentiment: A licensing agreement with Nxera Pharma for an EP4 agonist gives AbbVie another potential inflammatory bowel disease treatment candidate. The deal may add to its pipeline as investors assess the durability of its newer growth drivers. Nxera licenses EP4 agonist to AbbVie
• Positive Sentiment: AbbVie recently reached a fresh high following its earnings beat and a dividend increase, while analysts remain broadly optimistic. This supports investor interest in the stock as a defensive healthcare name. AbbVie’s new growth engines face another test
• Negative Sentiment: AbbVie’s shares have already climbed substantially and are near their 52-week high, leaving less room for disappointment. Humira’s decline also means the company must continue demonstrating that newer products can sustain growth. The one thing to settle before buying AbbVie stock

About AbbVie

AbbVie is a biopharmaceutical company that discovers, develops and markets medicines for a range of serious health conditions. Its research and product portfolio spans immunology, oncology, neuroscience and other therapeutic areas.

Key products include the immunology medicines Skyrizi and Rinvoq, cancer treatments such as Imbruvica and Venclexta, and neuroscience therapies including Botox and Vraylar. Through its Allergan acquisition, AbbVie also offers aesthetics products such as Botox Cosmetic and Juvéderm.

AbbVie was established in 2013 as a spin-off from Abbott Laboratories and is headquartered in North Chicago, Illinois.