Brokerages Set AbbVie Inc. (NYSE:ABBV) Target Price at $205.50

AbbVie Inc. (NYSE:ABBV) has been given an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by the twenty-four analysts that are presently covering the stock, Marketbeat.com reports. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, seventeen have issued a buy recommendation and two have given a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 12 month price objective among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $205.50.

A number of research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Bank of America reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $191.00 price objective on shares of AbbVie in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. Truist Financial cut their price target on AbbVie from $215.00 to $211.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Daiwa Capital Markets downgraded AbbVie from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $180.00 price objective for the company. in a research note on Thursday, December 5th. Wolfe Research began coverage on AbbVie in a research report on Friday, November 15th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $205.00 target price on the stock. Finally, TD Cowen upped their price target on AbbVie from $195.00 to $225.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, October 7th.

AbbVie Stock Performance

Shares of AbbVie stock opened at $173.68 on Friday. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $176.88 and a 200 day simple moving average of $184.54. AbbVie has a one year low of $153.58 and a one year high of $207.32. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 9.64, a current ratio of 0.65 and a quick ratio of 0.54. The firm has a market capitalization of $306.91 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 60.30, a PEG ratio of 1.73 and a beta of 0.58.

AbbVie (NYSE:ABBV) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 30th. The company reported $3.00 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.92 by $0.08. AbbVie had a return on equity of 244.01% and a net margin of 9.22%. The firm had revenue of $14.46 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $14.28 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.95 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 3.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts anticipate that AbbVie will post 10.06 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

AbbVie Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 14th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, January 15th will be given a dividend of $1.64 per share. This is an increase from AbbVie’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.55. This represents a $6.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.78%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, January 15th. AbbVie’s dividend payout ratio is currently 215.28%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, SVP Kevin K. Buckbee sold 1,800 shares of AbbVie stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $172.24, for a total value of $310,032.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 6,983 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,202,751.92. This trade represents a 20.49 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.25% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On AbbVie

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. GGM Financials LLC grew its stake in AbbVie by 0.7% in the 3rd quarter. GGM Financials LLC now owns 6,895 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,362,000 after buying an additional 50 shares in the last quarter. Pine Haven Investment Counsel Inc grew its position in shares of AbbVie by 0.3% in the third quarter. Pine Haven Investment Counsel Inc now owns 18,102 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,575,000 after purchasing an additional 52 shares in the last quarter. Dillon & Associates Inc. raised its stake in shares of AbbVie by 0.8% during the 3rd quarter. Dillon & Associates Inc. now owns 6,914 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,362,000 after purchasing an additional 52 shares during the period. Frisch Financial Group Inc. lifted its holdings in AbbVie by 0.8% during the 2nd quarter. Frisch Financial Group Inc. now owns 6,920 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,187,000 after purchasing an additional 53 shares in the last quarter. Finally, First Citizens Financial Corp boosted its stake in AbbVie by 0.9% in the 3rd quarter. First Citizens Financial Corp now owns 5,777 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,141,000 after purchasing an additional 53 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 70.23% 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.