Pzena Investment Management LLC Takes Position in AbbVie Inc. (NYSE:ABBV)

Pzena Investment Management LLC bought a new position in shares of AbbVie Inc. (NYSE:ABBV) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor bought 1,670 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $297,000.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Atlanta Consulting Group Advisors LLC acquired a new position in AbbVie during the third quarter worth approximately $999,000. Saturna Capital Corp boosted its holdings in AbbVie by 486.1% in the third quarter. Saturna Capital Corp now owns 676,176 shares of the company’s stock valued at $133,531,000 after acquiring an additional 560,808 shares during the last quarter. Everence Capital Management Inc. grew its position in AbbVie by 41.3% during the fourth quarter. Everence Capital Management Inc. now owns 53,171 shares of the company’s stock valued at $9,448,000 after acquiring an additional 15,550 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its holdings in shares of AbbVie by 9.5% in the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 39,453 shares of the company’s stock worth $7,011,000 after purchasing an additional 3,439 shares during the period. Finally, Avior Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of AbbVie by 23.5% in the 3rd quarter. Avior Wealth Management LLC now owns 56,556 shares of the company’s stock valued at $11,169,000 after purchasing an additional 10,768 shares in the last quarter. 70.23% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

AbbVie Stock Performance

NYSE:ABBV opened at $213.71 on Wednesday. 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 company has a 50-day moving average of $189.16 and a 200-day moving average of $187.73. AbbVie Inc. has a twelve month low of $153.58 and a twelve month high of $218.66. The firm has a market cap of $377.28 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 89.05, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.62 and a beta of 0.61.

AbbVie (NYSE:ABBV) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 31st. The company reported $2.16 earnings per share (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 quarter last year, the business posted $2.79 earnings per share. Analysts forecast that AbbVie Inc. will post 12.31 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

AbbVie Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 15th. Investors 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 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.07%. AbbVie’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 273.33%.

Insider Activity at AbbVie

In related news, SVP Kevin K. Buckbee sold 18,944 shares of the firm’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 completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now 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 position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Timothy J. Richmond sold 29,917 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction 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 directly owns 44,284 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,985,223.60. This trade represents a 40.32 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 56,439 shares of company stock worth $11,377,057 in the last quarter. 0.25% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Raymond James reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $220.00 target price (up previously from $218.00) on shares of AbbVie in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Truist Financial upped their price target on shares of AbbVie from $211.00 to $217.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. UBS Group boosted their price objective on AbbVie from $181.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Wolfe Research assumed coverage on AbbVie in a research note on Friday, November 15th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $205.00 target price for the company. Finally, Citigroup upped their price target on AbbVie from $205.00 to $215.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $211.45.

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.