Smithfield Trust Co Increases Holdings in AbbVie Inc. (NYSE:ABBV)

Smithfield Trust Co lifted its holdings in shares of AbbVie Inc. (NYSE:ABBV) by 0.2% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 33,054 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 78 shares during the period. Smithfield Trust Co’s holdings in AbbVie were worth $5,875,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC bought a new position in AbbVie during the third quarter valued at $28,000. Fiduciary Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in shares of AbbVie during the 4th quarter valued at $29,000. Bradley & Co. Private Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of AbbVie during the 4th quarter valued at $31,000. Retirement Wealth Solutions LLC purchased a new stake in AbbVie in the 4th quarter worth about $35,000. Finally, Mizuho Securities Co. Ltd. increased its holdings in AbbVie by 100.0% in the 3rd quarter. Mizuho Securities Co. Ltd. now owns 200 shares of the company’s stock worth $39,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. 70.23% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at AbbVie

In other news, EVP Timothy J. Richmond sold 29,917 shares of the company’s 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 sale, the executive vice president now owns 44,284 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,985,223.60. This represents a 40.32 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Perry C. Siatis sold 5,778 shares of AbbVie stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $197.90, for a total transaction of $1,143,466.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 22,381 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,429,199.90. The trade was a 20.52 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 56,439 shares of company stock valued at $11,377,057. Corporate insiders own 0.25% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on ABBV shares. Citigroup increased their target price on shares of AbbVie from $205.00 to $215.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on shares of AbbVie from $195.00 to $210.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Daiwa America lowered shares of AbbVie from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 5th. Guggenheim increased their target price on AbbVie from $212.00 to $214.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, Piper Sandler lifted their price target on AbbVie from $212.00 to $220.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 17th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, AbbVie presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $209.95.

AbbVie Price Performance

ABBV stock opened at $208.12 on Wednesday. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $185.64 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $187.14. The stock has a market cap of $367.40 billion, a PE ratio of 86.72, a P/E/G ratio of 1.62 and a beta of 0.58. AbbVie Inc. has a one year low of $153.58 and a one year high of $215.66. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 17.94, a current ratio of 0.66 and a quick ratio of 0.55.

AbbVie (NYSE:ABBV) last announced 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 business earned $2.79 earnings per share. On average, analysts predict that AbbVie Inc. will post 12.31 EPS for the current fiscal year.

AbbVie Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, April 15th will be given a dividend of $1.64 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, April 15th. This represents a $6.56 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.15%. AbbVie’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 273.33%.

About AbbVie

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.