Auxier Asset Management Has $5.72 Million Stock Holdings in AbbVie Inc. (NYSE:ABBV)

Auxier Asset Management lowered its holdings in shares of AbbVie Inc. (NYSE:ABBV) by 3.7% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 32,206 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,233 shares during the period. Auxier Asset Management’s holdings in AbbVie were worth $5,723,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Tallon Kerry Patrick bought a new stake in shares of AbbVie during the fourth quarter worth $309,000. Capital & Planning LLC grew its holdings in AbbVie by 1.7% during the 4th quarter. Capital & Planning LLC now owns 6,239 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,109,000 after acquiring an additional 105 shares during the period. LaFleur & Godfrey LLC increased its holdings in AbbVie by 4.1% in the fourth quarter. LaFleur & Godfrey LLC now owns 79,396 shares of the company’s stock valued at $14,109,000 after purchasing an additional 3,108 shares during the last quarter. Phillips Wealth Planners LLC increased its stake in shares of AbbVie by 2.7% in the 4th quarter. Phillips Wealth Planners LLC now owns 7,064 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,237,000 after acquiring an additional 188 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Janney Montgomery Scott LLC increased its stake in AbbVie by 2.7% in the fourth quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 956,556 shares of the company’s stock valued at $169,980,000 after purchasing an additional 25,246 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 70.23% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on the company. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $194.00 price target on shares of AbbVie in a research report on Tuesday, April 8th. Raymond James reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $220.00 price target (up from $218.00) on shares of AbbVie in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Cantor Fitzgerald began coverage on AbbVie in a report on Tuesday, April 22nd. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $210.00 price objective for the company. Guggenheim lifted their price target on AbbVie from $214.00 to $216.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 29th. Finally, BNP Paribas raised shares of AbbVie to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 8th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eighteen have issued a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $210.95.

AbbVie Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:ABBV opened at $183.51 on Friday. AbbVie Inc. has a 1 year low of $153.58 and a 1 year high of $218.66. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $188.39 and its 200 day simple moving average is $186.43. 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 stock has a market capitalization of $324.15 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 76.46, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.62 and a beta of 0.56.

AbbVie (NYSE:ABBV) last released 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. AbbVie had a net margin of 7.59% and a return on equity of 296.28%. The business had revenue of $13.34 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $12.91 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $2.31 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 8.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts predict that AbbVie Inc. will post 12.31 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Jeffrey Ryan Stewart sold 58,832 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 53,234 shares in the company, valued at $11,183,398.72. This trade represents a 52.50% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Timothy J. Richmond sold 29,917 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $202.90, for a total transaction of $6,070,159.30. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 44,284 shares in the company, valued at $8,985,223.60. This trade represents a 40.32% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 107,693 shares of company stock valued at $22,282,985. 0.25% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.