Encore Global Management LP Takes $544,000 Position in AbbVie Inc. $ABBV

Encore Global Management LP acquired a new stake in shares of AbbVie Inc. (NYSE:ABBV) during the first quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor acquired 2,500 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $544,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in ABBV. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in AbbVie by 1.7% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 180,779,699 shares of the company’s stock valued at $41,306,353,000 after purchasing an additional 3,032,438 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp grew its holdings in shares of AbbVie by 1.4% during the fourth quarter. State Street Corp now owns 80,940,931 shares of the company’s stock worth $18,494,193,000 after buying an additional 1,119,274 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of AbbVie by 10.4% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 44,629,980 shares of the company’s stock worth $10,179,099,000 after buying an additional 4,190,487 shares in the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE raised its position in shares of AbbVie by 1.4% in the fourth quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 25,824,399 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,900,617,000 after buying an additional 356,394 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of AbbVie in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $5,865,055,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.23% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on ABBV. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of AbbVie from $260.00 to $295.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, July 10th. Citigroup boosted their price target on AbbVie from $230.00 to $260.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 15th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of AbbVie in a research note on Monday, June 8th. Canaccord Genuity Group raised their price objective on AbbVie from $273.00 to $282.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 22nd. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald lifted their price objective on AbbVie from $240.00 to $265.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, July 6th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have issued a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, AbbVie has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $268.10.

AbbVie Stock Performance

ABBV opened at $263.49 on Wednesday. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $236.52 and its 200 day simple moving average is $223.32. AbbVie Inc. has a 1 year low of $187.62 and a 1 year high of $266.92. The stock has a market capitalization of $465.53 billion, a PE ratio of 129.80, a P/E/G ratio of 0.85 and a beta of 0.30.

AbbVie (NYSE:ABBV) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The company reported $2.65 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.59 by $0.06. AbbVie had a net margin of 5.79% and a negative return on equity of 576.45%. The firm had revenue of $15 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $14.72 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $2.46 earnings per share. AbbVie’s revenue was up 12.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that AbbVie Inc. will post 14.16 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

AbbVie Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 14th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, July 15th will be issued a $1.73 dividend. This represents a $6.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.6%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, July 15th. AbbVie’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 340.89%.

Key Stories Impacting AbbVie

Here are the key news stories impacting AbbVie this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Skyrizi and Rinvoq remain key growth drivers. The two immunology drugs are reportedly growing at more than 20% and have increasingly offset Humira’s loss of exclusivity, strengthening confidence in AbbVie’s long-term revenue outlook. Should You Buy, Hold or Sell ABBV Stock Ahead of Q2 Earnings?
• Positive Sentiment: Income and guidance support the investment case. Coverage highlights AbbVie’s roughly 2.62% dividend yield and raised earnings guidance, presenting ABBV as a combination of income, growth and comparatively low volatility ahead of the quarterly report. 3 Major Reasons for Investors to Buy AbbVie Stock Before July 31st
• Positive Sentiment: Pipeline and real-world data provide additional support. AbbVie completed a real-world RINVOQ study in psoriatic arthritis, while early safety data from the ABBV-722 Phase 1 program offer incremental pipeline visibility, though neither update is yet a major revenue catalyst. AbbVie Wraps Up Real-World RINVOQ Study in Psoriatic Arthritis
• Neutral Sentiment: Former AbbVie executive Michael Severino was named Sarepta Therapeutics’ CEO. The appointment is not expected to materially affect AbbVie’s operations, but it highlights the departure of a longtime AbbVie leader from the broader biopharmaceutical sector. Sarepta Names Former AbbVie President as CEO
• Negative Sentiment: Near-term “sell the news” risk remains. AbbVie’s recent rally has raised the possibility of profit-taking if second-quarter results, guidance or drug sales fail to exceed elevated expectations, despite the favorable long-term view. Should You Buy AbbVie Stock Hand Over Fist Before July 31?

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.