AbbVie (NYSE:ABBV) Downgraded by HSBC to “Hold”

HSBC cut shares of AbbVie (NYSE:ABBV) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a report published on Wednesday, Marketbeat reports.

A number of other analysts also recently weighed in on the company. Citigroup upped their target price on AbbVie to $205.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 11th. Berenberg Bank upgraded AbbVie from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their target price for the company from $170.00 to $270.00 in a research report on Wednesday, September 17th. Raymond James Financial reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of AbbVie in a research report on Monday, August 25th. Piper Sandler began coverage on AbbVie in a research report on Tuesday, August 12th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $231.00 target price for the company. Finally, BMO Capital Markets upped their target price on AbbVie from $215.00 to $240.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, September 12th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have given a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, AbbVie currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $223.45.

AbbVie Stock Performance

ABBV opened at $244.77 on Wednesday. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $208.97 and a 200 day simple moving average of $195.71. The company has a market capitalization of $432.40 billion, a PE ratio of 116.56, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.35 and a beta of 0.51. AbbVie has a 1 year low of $163.81 and a 1 year high of $244.81. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 44.14, a current ratio of 0.74 and a quick ratio of 0.61.

AbbVie (NYSE:ABBV) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The company reported $2.97 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.24 by ($0.27). The firm had revenue of $15.42 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $14.93 billion. AbbVie had a net margin of 6.45% and a return on equity of 699.66%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.65 earnings per share. Research analysts expect that AbbVie will post 12.31 EPS for the current year.

AbbVie Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 14th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, October 15th will be issued a $1.64 dividend. This represents a $6.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, October 15th. AbbVie’s dividend payout ratio is presently 312.38%.

Insider Transactions at AbbVie

In other AbbVie news, EVP Nicholas Donoghoe sold 13,295 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $198.51, for a total value of $2,639,190.45. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 58,247 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $11,562,611.97. This represents a 18.58% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Azita Saleki-Gerhardt sold 42,370 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $198.42, for a total value of $8,407,055.40. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 177,292 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $35,178,278.64. The trade was a 19.29% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.25% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On AbbVie

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. TD Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of AbbVie by 82.9% in the first quarter. TD Capital Management LLC now owns 128 shares of the company’s stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 58 shares during the period. Marshall & Sullivan Inc. WA acquired a new stake in AbbVie during the second quarter worth approximately $25,000. Evolution Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new stake in AbbVie during the second quarter worth approximately $26,000. Abound Financial LLC acquired a new stake in AbbVie during the first quarter worth approximately $30,000. Finally, Spurstone Advisory Services LLC acquired a new stake in AbbVie during the second quarter worth approximately $28,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.