Avitas Wealth Management LLC Increases Holdings in AbbVie Inc. (NYSE:ABBV)

Avitas Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in AbbVie Inc. (NYSE:ABBV – Get Rating) by 25.1% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 34,626 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 6,945 shares during the period. AbbVie makes up 1.2% of Avitas Wealth Management LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 22nd biggest holding. Avitas Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in AbbVie were worth $5,596,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in ABBV. O Dell Group LLC grew its stake in shares of AbbVie by 108.7% in the third quarter. O Dell Group LLC now owns 192 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. Oliver Lagore Vanvalin Investment Group grew its stake in AbbVie by 85.3% during the 3rd quarter. Oliver Lagore Vanvalin Investment Group now owns 202 shares of the company’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 93 shares in the last quarter. Align Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of AbbVie during the 4th quarter worth about $27,000. Activest Wealth Management acquired a new position in shares of AbbVie during the 3rd quarter worth about $31,000. Finally, Clear Perspectives Financial Planning LLC acquired a new position in shares of AbbVie during the 3rd quarter worth about $33,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 67.71% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at AbbVie

In other news, EVP Jeffrey Ryan Stewart sold 53,125 shares of AbbVie stock in a transaction on Monday, March 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $152.28, for a total transaction of $8,089,875.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 60,941 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,280,095.48. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. In related news, CFO Scott T. Reents sold 15,942 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $153.08, for a total value of $2,440,401.36. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 809 shares in the company, valued at approximately $123,841.72. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Jeffrey Ryan Stewart sold 53,125 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $152.28, for a total transaction of $8,089,875.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 60,941 shares in the company, valued at $9,280,095.48. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 159,746 shares of company stock valued at $24,267,450. Insiders own 0.08% of the company’s stock.

AbbVie Price Performance

AbbVie stock opened at $154.22 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $272.88 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.33, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.50 and a beta of 0.62. AbbVie Inc. has a one year low of $134.09 and a one year high of $175.91. The business has a fifty day moving average of $151.13 and a two-hundred day moving average of $150.82. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.42, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a current ratio of 0.96.

AbbVie (NYSE:ABBV – Get Rating) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 9th. The company reported $3.60 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.54 by $0.06. AbbVie had a net margin of 20.39% and a return on equity of 154.52%. The firm had revenue of $15.12 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $15.30 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $3.31 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 1.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts predict that AbbVie Inc. will post 11 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

AbbVie Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 15th. Investors of record on Friday, April 14th will be issued a dividend of $1.48 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 13th. This represents a $5.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.84%. AbbVie’s dividend payout ratio is presently 89.56%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on ABBV shares. Wolfe Research cut AbbVie from an “outperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 22nd. They noted that the move was a valuation call. StockNews.com downgraded AbbVie from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, March 10th. Atlantic Securities reduced their target price on AbbVie from $157.00 to $154.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 10th. Guggenheim initiated coverage on AbbVie in a report on Tuesday, February 28th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $172.00 target price for the company. Finally, BMO Capital Markets lowered their target price on shares of AbbVie from $169.00 to $167.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, February 6th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $161.12.

About AbbVie

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AbbVie, Inc is a research-based biopharmaceutical company, which engages in the development and sale of pharmaceutical products. It focuses on treating conditions such as chronic autoimmune diseases in rheumatology, gastroenterology, and dermatology, oncology, including blood cancers, virology, hepatitis C virus (HCV) and human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), neurological disorders, such as Parkinson’s, metabolic, comprising thyroid disease and complications associated with cystic fibrosis, pain associated with endometriosis, and other serious health conditions.