StockNews.com Downgrades AbbVie (NYSE:ABBV) to Buy

AbbVie (NYSE:ABBV – Get Rating) was downgraded by investment analysts at StockNews.com from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Friday.

A number of other research analysts also recently issued reports on ABBV. Wolfe Research downgraded AbbVie from an “outperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 22nd. They noted that the move was a valuation call. Piper Jaffray Companies boosted their target price on AbbVie from $157.00 to $163.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, February 10th. Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on AbbVie from $182.00 to $178.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, February 10th. BMO Capital Markets decreased their target price on AbbVie from $169.00 to $167.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, February 6th. Finally, Piper Sandler boosted their target price on AbbVie from $157.00 to $163.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 9th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $161.12.

AbbVie Stock Up 1.6 %

Shares of ABBV opened at $149.71 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $264.90 billion, a PE ratio of 22.65, a PEG ratio of 3.35 and a beta of 0.62. AbbVie has a 12 month low of $134.09 and a 12 month high of $175.91. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $152.10 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $150.34. The company has a current ratio of 0.96, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.42.

AbbVie (NYSE:ABBV – Get Rating) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 9th. The company reported $3.60 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.54 by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $15.12 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $15.30 billion. AbbVie had a return on equity of 154.52% and a net margin of 20.39%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 1.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $3.31 EPS. On average, analysts anticipate that AbbVie will post 11 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at AbbVie

In related news, SVP Carrie C. Strom sold 28,541 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $151.04, for a total value of $4,310,832.64. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 37,921 shares in the company, valued at $5,727,587.84. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other AbbVie news, EVP Azita Saleki-Gerhardt sold 25,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, February 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $149.53, for a total transaction of $3,738,250.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 233,208 shares in the company, valued at $34,871,592.24. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, SVP Carrie C. Strom sold 28,541 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $151.04, for a total value of $4,310,832.64. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 37,921 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,727,587.84. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 148,991 shares of company stock worth $23,102,528. Insiders own 0.08% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On AbbVie

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in ABBV. Red Tortoise LLC bought a new position in AbbVie in the fourth quarter valued at $27,000. O Dell Group LLC increased its stake in AbbVie by 108.7% in the third quarter. O Dell Group LLC now owns 192 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. Boulder Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in AbbVie in the fourth quarter valued at $31,000. My Personal CFO LLC bought a new position in AbbVie in the fourth quarter valued at $32,000. Finally, Align Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in AbbVie in the fourth quarter valued at $27,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 67.71% of the company’s stock.

About AbbVie

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AbbVie, Inc is a research-based biopharmaceutical company, which engages in the development and sale of pharmaceutical products. It focuses on treating conditions such as chronic autoimmune diseases in rheumatology, gastroenterology, and dermatology, oncology, including blood cancers, virology, hepatitis C virus (HCV) and human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), neurological disorders, such as Parkinson’s, metabolic, comprising thyroid disease and complications associated with cystic fibrosis, pain associated with endometriosis, and other serious health conditions.