AQR Capital Management LLC Sells 263,367 Shares of AbbVie Inc. (NYSE:ABBV)

AQR Capital Management LLC lessened its stake in AbbVie Inc. (NYSE:ABBV) by 15.4% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,448,367 shares of the company’s stock after selling 263,367 shares during the quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC owned about 0.08% of AbbVie worth $256,231,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Fiduciary Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in shares of AbbVie in the fourth quarter worth about $29,000. EnRich Financial Partners LLC boosted its position 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 buying an additional 110 shares during the period. Promus Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of AbbVie during the fourth quarter worth about $30,000. Bradley & Co. Private Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of AbbVie during the fourth quarter worth about $31,000. Finally, Prudent Man Investment Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of AbbVie during the fourth quarter worth about $32,000. Institutional investors own 70.23% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at AbbVie

In other news, EVP Jeffrey Ryan Stewart sold 58,832 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $210.08, for a total value of $12,359,426.56. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 53,234 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,183,398.72. This represents a 52.50 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Perry C. Siatis sold 5,778 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $197.90, for a total value of $1,143,466.20. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 22,381 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,429,199.90. This trade represents a 20.52 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 113,471 shares of company stock valued at $23,426,451. Corporate insiders own 0.25% of the company’s stock.

AbbVie Trading Up 3.4 %

Shares of ABBV stock opened at $192.43 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $340.40 billion, a PE ratio of 80.18, a P/E/G ratio of 1.62 and a beta of 0.55. AbbVie Inc. has a 1-year low of $153.58 and a 1-year high of $218.66. The business has a 50-day moving average of $196.75 and a 200 day moving average of $187.12. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 17.94, a current ratio of 0.66 and a quick ratio of 0.55.

AbbVie (NYSE:ABBV) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, April 25th. The company reported $2.46 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.40 by $0.06. AbbVie had a return on equity of 296.28% and a net margin of 7.59%. The business had revenue of $13.34 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $12.91 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $2.31 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 8.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that AbbVie Inc. will post 12.31 earnings per share for the current year.

AbbVie Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced 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. This represents a $6.56 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.41%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, April 15th. AbbVie’s dividend payout ratio is currently 279.15%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have recently weighed in on ABBV. Bank of America upped their price objective on AbbVie from $200.00 to $223.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 4th. Truist Financial increased their price target on AbbVie from $211.00 to $217.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $194.00 price target on shares of AbbVie in a research report on Tuesday, April 8th. UBS Group increased their price target on AbbVie from $181.00 to $190.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald assumed coverage on AbbVie in a research report on Tuesday, April 22nd. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $210.00 price objective for the company. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eighteen have given a buy rating and four have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $211.32.

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.