AbbVie (NYSE:ABBV) Trading Up 1.5% – What’s Next?

AbbVie Inc. (NYSE:ABBV)’s stock price was up 1.5% on Thursday . The company traded as high as $219.38 and last traded at $218.6560. Approximately 5,115,714 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 26% from the average daily volume of 6,904,654 shares. The stock had previously closed at $215.40.

More AbbVie News

Here are the key news stories impacting AbbVie this week:

• Positive Sentiment: AbbVie received U.S. FDA approval for DECNUPAZ, its first ADC approved for blood cancer, opening a new potential revenue stream in a highly specialized oncology market. U.S. FDA Approves DECNUPAZTM (pivekimab sunirine-pvzy) for Treatment of Adult Patients with Blastic Plasmacytoid Dendritic Cell Neoplasm, an Ultra-Rare and Aggressive Blood Cancer With Limited Treatment Options
• Positive Sentiment: The European Commission expanded the VENCLYXTO label in untreated CLL, broadening use of an established oncology drug and potentially supporting international sales. AbbVie Announces European Commission Authorization of Expanded Label for VENCLYXTO® (venetoclax) to Include Additional Combinations in Previously Untreated Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia
• Positive Sentiment: AbbVie advanced ABBV-519 into first-in-human testing, signaling continued momentum in its immunology pipeline. AbbVie Inc. (ABBV) Presents at EU Clinical Trial Regulation: Latest Developments and Upcoming Opportunities Transcript
• Neutral Sentiment: Recent articles note ABBV has outperformed since its last earnings report and remains viewed as reasonably valued by some analysts, but these are more commentary than fresh business catalysts. AbbVie (ABBV) Up 3.5% Since Last Earnings Report: Can It Continue?

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on ABBV shares. Bank of America upgraded shares of AbbVie from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $234.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Sanford C. Bernstein restated a “market perform” rating on shares of AbbVie in a research report on Thursday, February 5th. BMO Capital Markets restated an “outperform” rating on shares of AbbVie in a research report on Monday, March 9th. DZ Bank upgraded shares of AbbVie from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of AbbVie from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Saturday. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have given a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, AbbVie currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $253.43.

AbbVie Stock Down 0.4%

The firm has a market capitalization of $384.85 billion, a P/E ratio of 107.30, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.75 and a beta of 0.32. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $208.43 and its 200-day simple moving average is $219.66.

AbbVie (NYSE:ABBV) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The company reported $2.65 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.59 by $0.06. AbbVie had a net margin of 5.79% and a negative return on equity of 576.45%. The business had revenue of $15 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.72 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $2.46 earnings per share. AbbVie’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts expect that AbbVie Inc. will post 14.3 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at AbbVie

In other AbbVie news, SVP David Ryan Purdue sold 5,230 shares of AbbVie stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $233.56, for a total transaction of $1,221,518.80. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 2,654 shares in the company, valued at $619,868.24. The trade was a 66.34% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.06% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On AbbVie

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Bank of Jackson Hole Trust boosted its position in AbbVie by 0.6% during the 4th quarter. Bank of Jackson Hole Trust now owns 7,213 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,648,000 after acquiring an additional 44 shares in the last quarter. Eclectic Associates Inc. ADV boosted its position in shares of AbbVie by 0.8% in the 4th quarter. Eclectic Associates Inc. ADV now owns 5,852 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,337,000 after purchasing an additional 45 shares in the last quarter. Imprint Wealth LLC boosted its position in shares of AbbVie by 56.3% in the 4th quarter. Imprint Wealth LLC now owns 125 shares of the company’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 45 shares in the last quarter. Weil Company Inc. boosted its position in shares of AbbVie by 2.3% in the 3rd quarter. Weil Company Inc. now owns 2,026 shares of the company’s stock worth $469,000 after purchasing an additional 46 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Hardin Capital Partners LLC boosted its position in shares of AbbVie by 1.4% in the 4th quarter. Hardin Capital Partners LLC now owns 3,321 shares of the company’s stock worth $759,000 after purchasing an additional 46 shares in the last quarter. 70.23% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About AbbVie

AbbVie is a global, research-driven biopharmaceutical company that was created as a spin-off from Abbott Laboratories in 2013 and is headquartered in North Chicago, Illinois. The company focuses on discovering, developing and commercializing therapies for complex and often chronic medical conditions. Its operations span research and development, manufacturing, regulatory affairs and commercialization, with an emphasis on bringing specialty medicines to market across multiple therapeutic areas.

AbbVie’s product portfolio and pipeline cover several major therapeutic categories, including immunology, oncology, neuroscience, virology and women’s health.