1620 Investment Advisors Inc. Cuts Stock Position in AbbVie Inc. (NYSE:ABBV)

1620 Investment Advisors Inc. lessened its stake in AbbVie Inc. (NYSE:ABBV) by 1.8% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 7,431 shares of the company’s stock after selling 133 shares during the quarter. AbbVie makes up about 1.0% of 1620 Investment Advisors Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 19th biggest holding. 1620 Investment Advisors Inc.’s holdings in AbbVie were worth $1,321,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in ABBV. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in AbbVie during the 4th quarter worth $1,190,951,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its stake in AbbVie by 15.1% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 27,436,133 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,875,401,000 after purchasing an additional 3,599,336 shares during the last quarter. Boston Partners boosted its stake in AbbVie by 35.9% during the 4th quarter. Boston Partners now owns 5,687,472 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,008,867,000 after purchasing an additional 1,503,875 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp boosted its stake in AbbVie by 1.6% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 79,067,935 shares of the company’s stock worth $15,614,329,000 after purchasing an additional 1,267,685 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Proficio Capital Partners LLC boosted its stake in AbbVie by 26,693.1% during the 4th quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 1,176,754 shares of the company’s stock worth $209,109,000 after purchasing an additional 1,172,362 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.23% of the company’s stock.

AbbVie Stock Down 0.3 %

Shares of NYSE:ABBV opened at $211.54 on Friday. 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 firm has a market capitalization of $373.44 billion, a PE ratio of 88.14, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.62 and a beta of 0.61. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $193.80 and its two-hundred day moving average is $188.64. AbbVie Inc. has a 1 year low of $153.58 and a 1 year high of $218.66.

AbbVie (NYSE:ABBV) last released its earnings results on Friday, January 31st. The company reported $2.16 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates 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 EPS. Analysts predict that AbbVie Inc. will post 12.31 EPS for the current year.

AbbVie Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, April 15th will be paid a dividend of $1.64 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 15th. This represents a $6.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.10%. AbbVie’s payout ratio is 273.33%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have issued reports on ABBV. Leerink Partnrs raised shares of AbbVie from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. Truist Financial boosted their price target on shares of AbbVie from $211.00 to $217.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on shares of AbbVie from $210.00 to $240.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on shares of AbbVie from $224.00 to $239.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, BMO Capital Markets boosted their price target on shares of AbbVie from $208.00 to $215.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have issued a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, AbbVie has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $211.45.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Timothy J. Richmond sold 29,917 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 26th. The stock was 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 directly owns 44,284 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,985,223.60. This represents a 40.32 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Kevin K. Buckbee sold 18,944 shares of the company’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 directly owns 11,496 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,338,401.36. This trade represents a 62.23 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 54,639 shares of company stock worth $11,067,025. Company insiders own 0.25% of the company’s stock.

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.