Zacks Investment Management Has $168.49 Million Position in AbbVie Inc. (NYSE:ABBV)

Zacks Investment Management lifted its stake in AbbVie Inc. (NYSE:ABBV) by 11.0% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 853,207 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 84,395 shares during the period. AbbVie accounts for 1.5% of Zacks Investment Management’s portfolio, making the stock its 13th largest position. Zacks Investment Management’s holdings in AbbVie were worth $168,491,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of ABBV. Fairway Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in shares of AbbVie in the second quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Ridgewood Investments LLC acquired a new stake in shares of AbbVie in the second quarter valued at approximately $27,000. RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC acquired a new stake in shares of AbbVie in the third quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Quest Partners LLC increased its holdings in shares of AbbVie by 4,140.0% in the second quarter. Quest Partners LLC now owns 212 shares of the company’s stock valued at $36,000 after purchasing an additional 207 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Marquette Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of AbbVie in the third quarter valued at approximately $39,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.23% of the company’s stock.

AbbVie Trading Up 0.0 %

Shares of NYSE:ABBV opened at $176.18 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.54, a current ratio of 0.65 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 9.64. AbbVie Inc. has a 12 month low of $145.20 and a 12 month high of $207.32. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $187.14 and its 200 day simple moving average is $182.17. The firm has a market cap of $311.33 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 61.17, a PEG ratio of 2.02 and a beta of 0.58.

AbbVie (NYSE:ABBV) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The company reported $3.00 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.92 by $0.08. AbbVie had a net margin of 9.22% and a return on equity of 244.01%. The firm had revenue of $14.46 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.28 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $2.95 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 3.8% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts forecast that AbbVie Inc. will post 10.95 EPS for the current fiscal year.

AbbVie Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 14th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, January 15th will be paid a $1.64 dividend. This is a positive change from AbbVie’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.55. This represents a $6.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.72%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, January 15th. AbbVie’s payout ratio is presently 215.28%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ABBV has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Argus raised shares of AbbVie from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, November 4th. Citigroup reduced their price objective on shares of AbbVie from $226.00 to $215.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, November 12th. Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on shares of AbbVie from $231.00 to $224.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, November 12th. Bank of America raised their price objective on shares of AbbVie from $185.00 to $195.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, October 18th. Finally, Barclays raised their price objective on shares of AbbVie from $200.00 to $212.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, October 7th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eighteen have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $202.38.

AbbVie Company Profile

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.