AbbVie (NYSE:ABBV) Shares Up 0.7% - Here's Why

AbbVie Inc. (NYSE:ABBV - Get Free Report) shares shot up 0.7% on Friday . The stock traded as high as $211.89 and last traded at $212.15. 1,721,052 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 71% from the average session volume of 5,958,205 shares. The stock had previously closed at $210.75.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have weighed in on ABBV. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on shares of AbbVie from $224.00 to $239.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Piper Sandler raised their target price on shares of AbbVie from $212.00 to $220.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. Daiwa Capital Markets downgraded shares of AbbVie from an "outperform" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $180.00 target price for the company. in a research note on Thursday, December 5th. Leerink Partners upgraded shares of AbbVie from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $206.00 target price for the company in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. Finally, Raymond James restated an "outperform" rating and issued a $220.00 target price (up from $218.00) on shares of AbbVie in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $211.45.

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AbbVie Trading Up 1.8 %

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 company's fifty day moving average is $187.63 and its 200-day moving average is $187.53. The stock has a market cap of $378.75 billion, a PE ratio of 89.40, a PEG ratio of 1.62 and a beta of 0.61.

AbbVie (NYSE:ABBV - Get Free Report) last issued its 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 in the previous year, the firm posted $2.79 EPS. On average, analysts predict that AbbVie Inc. will post 12.31 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

AbbVie Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, April 15th will be issued a $1.64 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, April 15th. This represents a $6.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.06%. AbbVie's payout ratio is 273.33%.

Insider Buying and Selling at AbbVie

In other AbbVie news, EVP Timothy J. Richmond sold 29,917 shares of AbbVie stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $202.90, for a total value of $6,070,159.30. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 44,284 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $8,985,223.60. The trade was a 40.32 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, SVP Kevin K. Buckbee sold 1,800 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $172.24, for a total transaction of $310,032.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 6,983 shares in the company, valued at $1,202,751.92. The trade was a 20.49 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 56,439 shares of company stock valued at $11,377,057. Corporate insiders own 0.25% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On AbbVie

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of ABBV. Groupama Asset Managment raised its stake in AbbVie by 40.3% during the third quarter. Groupama Asset Managment now owns 135,749 shares of the company's stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 38,974 shares during the period. RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC purchased a new stake in shares of AbbVie in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Fiduciary Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of AbbVie in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $29,000. EnRich Financial Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of AbbVie by 196.4% in the 4th quarter. EnRich Financial Partners LLC now owns 166 shares of the company's stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 110 shares during the period. Finally, Promus Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of AbbVie in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $30,000. 70.23% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

AbbVie Company 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.