AbbVie (NYSE:ABBV) Shares Down 1.8% – Here’s What Happened

AbbVie Inc. (NYSE:ABBV)’s stock price traded down 1.8% during mid-day trading on Friday . The stock traded as low as $219.00 and last traded at $220.0580. 6,628,958 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 17% from the average session volume of 8,014,503 shares. The stock had previously closed at $224.13.

Key AbbVie News

Here are the key news stories impacting AbbVie this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Multiple clinical and pipeline updates point to ongoing product-cycle growth (Phase 1 ABBV‑243 safety data, progress on icalcaprant, and completed real‑world studies for Rinvoq and upadacitinib), supporting longer‑term revenue diversification away from Humira. ABBV‑243 Phase 1 Trial
• Positive Sentiment: Zacks and other analysts highlight immunology momentum — strong Skyrizi and Rinvoq demand is expected to help offset Humira LOE, which is a constructive revenue thesis for FY‑2025/2026. Zacks: Immunology expectations
• Positive Sentiment: Dividend-focused coverage (Seeking Alpha pieces) and a recent buy rating from Berenberg support income‑oriented and value investors who view ABBV’s payout and yield as a stabilizer. Seeking Alpha: Dividend thesis Berenberg buy
• Neutral Sentiment: Press swirl about potential suitors for Revolution Medicines (reports that Merck may be in talks) creates market noise that can influence sector comps and M&A speculation but does not change AbbVie’s fundamentals unless a deal is announced. FT: Merck talks on Revolution
• Negative Sentiment: AbbVie publicly denied reports it was in talks to acquire Revolution Medicines after earlier speculation drove gains in both names; the denial removed the takeover premium and likely triggered short‑term selling pressure. Barron’s: AbbVie denies talks
• Negative Sentiment: Management’s updated Q4 and FY‑2025 EPS guidance came in at the low end or slightly below consensus (Q4: 3.320–3.360 vs. cons. 3.360; FY: 10.610–10.650 vs. cons. 10.650), which can cap near‑term upside and weigh on sentiment. (Company guidance update)
• Negative Sentiment: AbbVie flagged IPR&D and related expenses that will negatively impact Q4 EPS, a known near‑term earnings headwind highlighted by Seeking Alpha coverage. Seeking Alpha: IPR&D Q4 EPS impact

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have commented on ABBV. Bank of America boosted their target price on shares of AbbVie from $220.00 to $251.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, October 3rd. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on shares of AbbVie from $261.00 to $269.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, December 12th. Guggenheim upped their target price on shares of AbbVie from $227.00 to $242.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, October 20th. UBS Group assumed coverage on shares of AbbVie in a research report on Wednesday. They set a “neutral” rating and a $240.00 price target for the company. Finally, Berenberg Bank upgraded AbbVie from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price target for the stock from $170.00 to $270.00 in a report on Wednesday, September 17th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have assigned a Buy rating and eight have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $246.89.

AbbVie Stock Performance

The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $226.55 and a 200 day simple moving average of $214.86. The stock has a market cap of $388.93 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 166.71, a PEG ratio of 0.98 and a beta of 0.36.

AbbVie (NYSE:ABBV) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, October 31st. The company reported $1.86 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.77 by $0.09. The business had revenue of $15.78 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $15.58 billion. AbbVie had a return on equity of 3,216.47% and a net margin of 4.00%.The business’s revenue was up 9.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $3.00 earnings per share. AbbVie has set its Q4 2025 guidance at 3.320-3.360 EPS. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that AbbVie Inc. will post 12.31 EPS for the current fiscal year.

AbbVie Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, February 17th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 16th will be paid a dividend of $1.73 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 16th. This represents a $6.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.1%. This is an increase from AbbVie’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.64. AbbVie’s dividend payout ratio is 496.97%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On AbbVie

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of ABBV. Conning Inc. raised its stake in shares of AbbVie by 7.1% in the 2nd quarter. Conning Inc. now owns 191,023 shares of the company’s stock valued at $35,458,000 after purchasing an additional 12,690 shares in the last quarter. Diversified Trust Co increased its holdings in AbbVie by 23.6% in the third quarter. Diversified Trust Co now owns 57,076 shares of the company’s stock valued at $13,215,000 after buying an additional 10,891 shares during the last quarter. Dohj LLC increased its holdings in AbbVie by 41.8% in the second quarter. Dohj LLC now owns 4,529 shares of the company’s stock valued at $802,000 after buying an additional 1,335 shares during the last quarter. Permanent Capital Management LP acquired a new stake in AbbVie during the third quarter valued at approximately $720,000. Finally, Railway Pension Investments Ltd lifted its holdings in AbbVie by 33.0% during the 3rd quarter. Railway Pension Investments Ltd now owns 853,949 shares of the company’s stock worth $197,723,000 after buying an additional 211,800 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.23% of the company’s stock.

AbbVie Company Profile

AbbVie is a global, research-driven biopharmaceutical company that was created as a spin-off from Abbott Laboratories in 2013 and is headquartered in North Chicago, Illinois. The company focuses on discovering, developing and commercializing therapies for complex and often chronic medical conditions. Its operations span research and development, manufacturing, regulatory affairs and commercialization, with an emphasis on bringing specialty medicines to market across multiple therapeutic areas.

AbbVie’s product portfolio and pipeline cover several major therapeutic categories, including immunology, oncology, neuroscience, virology and women’s health.