AbbVie Inc. $ABBV Stock Sold by Candriam S.C.A.

Candriam S.C.A. lowered its stake in shares of AbbVie Inc. (NYSE:ABBV) by 23.1% in the third quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 895,789 shares of the company’s stock after selling 268,956 shares during the period. AbbVie comprises approximately 1.1% of Candriam S.C.A.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 17th biggest holding. Candriam S.C.A.’s holdings in AbbVie were worth $235,186,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. State Street Corp raised its stake in shares of AbbVie by 1.7% in the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 82,596,748 shares of the company’s stock worth $20,784,646,000 after purchasing an additional 1,379,232 shares during the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC lifted its holdings in shares of AbbVie by 0.7% in the second quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 14,267,697 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,590,323,000 after purchasing an additional 106,091 shares in the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc purchased a new position in shares of AbbVie during the second quarter valued at approximately $2,905,952,000. Deutsche Bank AG boosted its position in shares of AbbVie by 13.0% during the second quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 10,772,949 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,710,905,000 after buying an additional 1,241,587 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Amundi boosted its position in shares of AbbVie by 2.4% during the first quarter. Amundi now owns 10,698,095 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,326,728,000 after buying an additional 247,689 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.23% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on the company. Bank of America reissued a “buy” rating on shares of AbbVie in a research report on Tuesday, September 8th. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on AbbVie from $310.00 to $346.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, November 2nd. Citigroup lifted their price objective on shares of AbbVie from $230.00 to $260.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 15th. Canaccord Genuity Group upped their target price on shares of AbbVie from $290.00 to $338.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, November 2nd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on shares of AbbVie from $285.00 to $300.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, October 8th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-two have assigned a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $297.46.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other AbbVie news, EVP Nicholas Donoghoe sold 32,710 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, August 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $250.00, for a total value of $8,177,500.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 74,430 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $18,607,500. The trade was a 30.53% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction 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 Stock Up 1.1%

AbbVie stock opened at $291.51 on Friday. AbbVie Inc. has a 52 week low of $190.75 and a 52 week high of $302.93. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $271.98 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $239.04. The stock 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 (NYSE:ABBV) last announced its earnings results 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. The firm had revenue of $17.40 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $17.32 billion. AbbVie had a negative return on equity of 450.55% and a net margin of 15.67%. The company’s revenue was up 10.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.86 EPS. On average, equities analysts anticipate that AbbVie Inc. will post 13.99 EPS for the current year.

AbbVie Increases Dividend

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

Key Headlines Impacting AbbVie

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.