Bank of America Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for AbbVie (NYSE:ABBV) Stock

AbbVie (NYSE:ABBV) had its price objective hoisted by analysts at Bank of America to $204.00 in a research note issued on Monday, Stock Target Advisor reports. The brokerage currently has a “hold” rating on the stock. Bank of America‘s price target suggests a potential upside of 7.43% from the company’s current price.

Several other brokerages have also issued reports on ABBV. Cantor Fitzgerald initiated coverage on AbbVie in a report on Tuesday, April 22nd. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $210.00 price target on the stock. Guggenheim boosted their price target on shares of AbbVie from $214.00 to $216.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 29th. Erste Group Bank raised shares of AbbVie to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, March 17th. Wall Street Zen cut shares of AbbVie from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, May 22nd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on shares of AbbVie from $210.00 to $240.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have issued a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, AbbVie currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $211.29.

AbbVie Price Performance

AbbVie stock opened at $189.89 on Monday. The stock has a market capitalization of $335.42 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 79.12, a PEG ratio of 1.62 and a beta of 0.50. AbbVie has a 52-week low of $163.52 and a 52-week high of $218.66. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 17.94, a quick ratio of 0.55 and a current ratio of 0.66. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $184.24 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $187.19.

AbbVie (NYSE:ABBV) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, April 25th. The company reported $2.46 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.40 by $0.06. AbbVie had a net margin of 7.59% and a return on equity of 296.28%. The business had revenue of $13.34 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $12.91 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $2.31 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 8.4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts predict that AbbVie will post 12.31 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Jeffrey Ryan Stewart sold 58,832 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $210.08, for a total transaction of $12,359,426.56. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 53,234 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,183,398.72. This represents a 52.50% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.25% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On AbbVie

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in ABBV. Blue Bell Private Wealth Management LLC raised its position in AbbVie by 30.4% in the 4th quarter. Blue Bell Private Wealth Management LLC now owns 223 shares of the company’s stock worth $40,000 after purchasing an additional 52 shares during the period. Steel Grove Capital Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of AbbVie by 1.7% in the fourth quarter. Steel Grove Capital Advisors LLC now owns 3,110 shares of the company’s stock worth $553,000 after buying an additional 52 shares during the period. Peninsula Wealth LLC lifted its stake in shares of AbbVie by 4.1% in the 4th quarter. Peninsula Wealth LLC now owns 1,360 shares of the company’s stock valued at $242,000 after acquiring an additional 54 shares during the last quarter. Private Management Group Inc. boosted its holdings in AbbVie by 1.9% during the 1st quarter. Private Management Group Inc. now owns 2,938 shares of the company’s stock valued at $616,000 after acquiring an additional 54 shares during the period. Finally, Physicians Financial Services Inc. grew its position in AbbVie by 0.5% during the 4th quarter. Physicians Financial Services Inc. now owns 12,150 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,159,000 after acquiring an additional 55 shares during the last quarter. 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.