AbbVie (NYSE:ABBV) Stock Price Up 1.1% – Still a Buy?

AbbVie Inc. (NYSE:ABBV)’s share price shot up 1.1% on Friday. The stock traded as high as $291.73 and last traded at $291.5070. 5,017,059 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 21% from the average session volume of 6,339,831 shares. The stock had previously closed at $288.24.

AbbVie News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting AbbVie this week:

• Positive Sentiment: AbbVie’s third-quarter results beat expectations, with revenue of $17.4 billion, and the company raised its full-year adjusted earnings outlook. The earnings report has strengthened the growth case for the shares. AbbVie stock climbs as Q3 earnings fuel growth case
• Positive Sentiment: A licensing agreement with Nxera Pharma for an EP4 agonist gives AbbVie another potential inflammatory bowel disease treatment candidate. The deal may add to its pipeline as investors assess the durability of its newer growth drivers. Nxera licenses EP4 agonist to AbbVie
• Positive Sentiment: AbbVie recently reached a fresh high following its earnings beat and a dividend increase, while analysts remain broadly optimistic. This supports investor interest in the stock as a defensive healthcare name. AbbVie’s new growth engines face another test
• Negative Sentiment: AbbVie’s shares have already climbed substantially and are near their 52-week high, leaving less room for disappointment. Humira’s decline also means the company must continue demonstrating that newer products can sustain growth. The one thing to settle before buying AbbVie stock

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have commented on ABBV. Wolfe Research upgraded shares of AbbVie from a “peer perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and increased their price objective for the company from $235.00 to $300.00 in a research note on Thursday, August 13th. Cantor Fitzgerald boosted their target price on AbbVie from $290.00 to $325.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, November 2nd. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their target price on AbbVie from $258.00 to $294.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, October 23rd. Piper Sandler increased their price target on AbbVie from $298.00 to $303.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 20th. Finally, UBS Group increased their price target on AbbVie from $275.00 to $295.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, November 2nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-two have given a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, AbbVie currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $297.46.

AbbVie Stock Up 1.1%

The company has a market cap of $515.27 billion, a P/E ratio of 50.17, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.32 and a beta of 0.20. The company’s 50-day moving average is $271.98 and its two-hundred day moving average is $239.04.

AbbVie (NYSE:ABBV) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, October 30th. The company reported $3.82 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.73 by $0.09. The business had revenue of $17.40 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $17.32 billion. AbbVie had a net margin of 15.67% and a negative return on equity of 450.55%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 10.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $1.86 earnings per share. On average, analysts anticipate that AbbVie Inc. will post 13.99 EPS for the current fiscal year.

AbbVie Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, February 16th. Investors of record on Friday, January 15th will be paid a $1.82 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 15th. This is a positive change from AbbVie’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.73. This represents a $7.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.5%. AbbVie’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 125.30%.

Insider Activity at AbbVie

In other news, EVP Nicholas Donoghoe sold 32,710 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, August 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $250.00, for a total transaction of $8,177,500.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 74,430 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $18,607,500. This represents a 30.53% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 0.06% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On AbbVie

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Ranch Capital Advisors Inc. boosted its holdings in AbbVie by 37.0% in the first quarter. Ranch Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 14,888 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,238,000 after acquiring an additional 4,017 shares in the last quarter. Capital Advisors Inc. OK raised its holdings in AbbVie by 11.2% in the 2nd quarter. Capital Advisors Inc. OK now owns 447,129 shares of the company’s stock worth $112,516,000 after purchasing an additional 45,132 shares in the last quarter. Danica Pension Livsforsikringsaktieselskab bought a new position in AbbVie in the 2nd quarter worth $23,557,000. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC raised its holdings in AbbVie by 7.5% in the 2nd quarter. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC now owns 134,579 shares of the company’s stock worth $33,865,000 after purchasing an additional 9,380 shares in the last quarter. Finally, State Street Corp lifted its position in shares of AbbVie by 1.7% in the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 82,596,748 shares of the company’s stock worth $20,784,646,000 after purchasing an additional 1,379,232 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.23% of the company’s stock.

AbbVie Company Profile

AbbVie is a biopharmaceutical company that discovers, develops and markets medicines for a range of serious health conditions. Its research and product portfolio spans immunology, oncology, neuroscience and other therapeutic areas.

Key products include the immunology medicines Skyrizi and Rinvoq, cancer treatments such as Imbruvica and Venclexta, and neuroscience therapies including Botox and Vraylar. Through its Allergan acquisition, AbbVie also offers aesthetics products such as Botox Cosmetic and Juvéderm.

AbbVie was established in 2013 as a spin-off from Abbott Laboratories and is headquartered in North Chicago, Illinois.