LGT Fund Management Co Ltd. Raises Holdings in AbbVie Inc. $ABBV

LGT Fund Management Co Ltd. lifted its position in AbbVie Inc. (NYSE:ABBV) by 384.5% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 48,331 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 38,356 shares during the quarter. LGT Fund Management Co Ltd.’s holdings in AbbVie were worth $10,512,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in ABBV. Norges Bank bought a new stake in AbbVie in the 4th quarter worth approximately $5,865,055,000. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its position in shares of AbbVie by 457.4% during the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 10,536,901 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,439,714,000 after acquiring an additional 8,646,424 shares during the last quarter. Capital World Investors grew its holdings in shares of AbbVie by 106.3% in the fourth quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 13,071,444 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,986,777,000 after purchasing an additional 6,736,161 shares in the last quarter. Cardano Risk Management B.V. grew its holdings in shares of AbbVie by 914.6% in the fourth quarter. Cardano Risk Management B.V. now owns 5,444,930 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,244,112,000 after purchasing an additional 4,908,260 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in AbbVie by 10.4% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 44,629,980 shares of the company’s stock worth $10,179,099,000 after purchasing an additional 4,190,487 shares during the last quarter. 70.23% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their price target on shares of AbbVie from $260.00 to $280.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday. Sanford C. Bernstein restated a “market perform” rating on shares of AbbVie in a report on Tuesday, June 23rd. Cantor Fitzgerald upped their target price on shares of AbbVie from $240.00 to $265.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, July 6th. Bank of America increased their price target on shares of AbbVie from $234.00 to $276.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday. Finally, DZ Bank upgraded AbbVie from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have given a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $262.81.

AbbVie Trading Down 0.8%

Shares of ABBV stock traded down $1.91 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $248.00. 5,780,723 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 8,942,850. AbbVie Inc. has a 12-month low of $184.63 and a 12-month high of $261.64. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $225.42 and its 200-day moving average price is $221.25. The firm has a market capitalization of $438.17 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 122.17, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.81 and a beta of 0.30.

AbbVie (NYSE:ABBV) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 29th. The company reported $2.65 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.59 by $0.06. The company had revenue of $15 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.72 billion. AbbVie had a net margin of 5.79% and a negative return on equity of 576.45%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $2.46 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts expect that AbbVie Inc. will post 14.3 EPS for the current year.

AbbVie Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 14th. Investors of record on Wednesday, July 15th will be paid a dividend of $1.73 per share. This represents a $6.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, July 15th. AbbVie’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 340.89%.

AbbVie News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting AbbVie this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Bank of America raised AbbVie’s price target to $276 from $234 and reiterated a buy rating, signaling confidence in additional upside for the shares. Bank of America raises AbbVie price target
• Positive Sentiment: RBC Capital also increased its price target to $280 from $260 and kept an outperform rating, adding to the wave of analyst support. RBC raises AbbVie price target
• Positive Sentiment: JPMorgan likewise lifted its target to $280 from $260 and maintained an overweight rating, reinforcing a favorable near-term outlook for AbbVie. JPMorgan raises AbbVie price target
• Neutral Sentiment: Recent coverage comparing Johnson & Johnson and AbbVie highlighted how both pharma giants’ latest quarterly results are shaping income-investor preferences, but it did not point to a clear new catalyst for AbbVie. Johnson & Johnson vs AbbVie article
• Neutral Sentiment: AbbVie also appeared in an industry piece on the expanding cystic fibrosis market, which may be supportive of long-term therapeutic demand but is not an immediate stock-moving event. Cystic fibrosis market article
• Negative Sentiment: Despite the analyst upgrades, AbbVie was recently reported as having moved lower in trading, suggesting the stock is still contending with profit-taking or broader market pressure. AbbVie stock drops despite market gains
• Neutral Sentiment: West Pharmaceutical completed the SmartDose sale to AbbVie, a routine transaction that may support AbbVie’s drug-delivery capabilities but is unlikely to move the stock on its own. West Pharmaceutical SmartDose sale to AbbVie

About AbbVie

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.