AbbVie Inc. (NYSE:ABBV) Shares Acquired by Sawgrass Asset Management LLC

Sawgrass Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in AbbVie Inc. (NYSE:ABBV) by 25.6% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 93,748 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 19,136 shares during the period. AbbVie comprises 1.6% of Sawgrass Asset Management LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 15th largest position. Sawgrass Asset Management LLC’s holdings in AbbVie were worth $14,528,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. DiNuzzo Private Wealth Inc. bought a new position in AbbVie during the fourth quarter worth $44,000. Blue Bell Private Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in AbbVie by 39.5% in the third quarter. Blue Bell Private Wealth Management LLC now owns 286 shares of the company’s stock worth $43,000 after acquiring an additional 81 shares during the last quarter. Horrell Capital Management Inc. bought a new stake in AbbVie in the third quarter valued at $45,000. Bourgeon Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of AbbVie by 240.0% during the fourth quarter. Bourgeon Capital Management LLC now owns 340 shares of the company’s stock worth $53,000 after acquiring an additional 240 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Naples Money Management LLC bought a new stake in AbbVie in the 4th quarter valued at about $53,000. 70.23% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Azita Saleki-Gerhardt sold 52,870 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $173.71, for a total value of $9,184,047.70. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 243,944 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $42,375,512.24. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other news, EVP Jeffrey Ryan Stewart sold 58,949 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $178.79, for a total transaction of $10,539,491.71. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 60,941 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,895,641.39. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Azita Saleki-Gerhardt sold 52,870 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $173.71, for a total value of $9,184,047.70. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 243,944 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $42,375,512.24. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 383,324 shares of company stock valued at $67,780,003. 0.25% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

AbbVie Stock Performance

ABBV stock traded down $2.15 on Wednesday, reaching $160.40. 5,906,428 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 5,662,472. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.02, a current ratio of 0.87 and a quick ratio of 0.76. AbbVie Inc. has a 12 month low of $130.96 and a 12 month high of $182.89. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $172.48 and its 200 day moving average price is $161.62. The firm has a market capitalization of $283.25 billion, a PE ratio of 47.60, a PEG ratio of 2.07 and a beta of 0.61.

AbbVie (NYSE:ABBV) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, May 3rd. The company reported $2.31 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.26 by $0.05. The company had revenue of $12.31 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $11.93 billion. AbbVie had a net margin of 11.02% and a return on equity of 165.18%. The business’s revenue was up .7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $2.46 EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that AbbVie Inc. will post 11.29 EPS for the current fiscal year.

AbbVie Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, April 15th will be given a dividend of $1.55 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 12th. This represents a $6.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.87%. AbbVie’s payout ratio is presently 183.98%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have commented on ABBV shares. Raymond James boosted their price target on shares of AbbVie from $181.00 to $189.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, February 5th. Guggenheim raised their target price on AbbVie from $188.00 to $190.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, March 22nd. Barclays cut their price target on shares of AbbVie from $195.00 to $187.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 29th. BMO Capital Markets reduced their price objective on AbbVie from $195.00 to $180.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 29th. Finally, Truist Financial lifted their price target on AbbVie from $180.00 to $195.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 6th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $174.31.

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.