Pictet Asset Management Holding SA Buys 26,771 Shares of AbbVie Inc. (NYSE:ABBV)

Pictet Asset Management Holding SA increased its stake in AbbVie Inc. (NYSE:ABBV) by 3.4% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 817,389 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 26,771 shares during the period. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA’s holdings in AbbVie were worth $145,250,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of ABBV. Groupama Asset Managment boosted its stake in shares of AbbVie by 40.3% during the 3rd quarter. Groupama Asset Managment now owns 135,749 shares of the company’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 38,974 shares during the period. Fiduciary Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in shares of AbbVie during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Promus Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of AbbVie in the fourth quarter worth approximately $30,000. Bradley & Co. Private Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of AbbVie during the 4th quarter worth approximately $31,000. Finally, Retirement Wealth Solutions LLC purchased a new position in AbbVie during the 4th quarter valued at $35,000. 70.23% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

AbbVie Stock Up 1.2 %

Shares of ABBV stock opened at $205.12 on Friday. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $197.50 and its 200 day moving average price is $189.02. AbbVie Inc. has a 1-year low of $153.58 and a 1-year high of $218.66. The company has a market cap of $362.85 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 85.47, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.62 and a beta of 0.61. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 17.94, a current ratio of 0.66 and a quick ratio of 0.55.

AbbVie (NYSE:ABBV) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 31st. The company reported $2.16 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.98 by ($0.82). AbbVie had a net margin of 7.59% and a return on equity of 296.28%. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $2.79 EPS. On average, research analysts expect that AbbVie Inc. will post 12.31 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

AbbVie Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, April 15th will be paid a dividend of $1.64 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 15th. This represents a $6.56 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.20%. AbbVie’s payout ratio is currently 273.33%.

Insider Activity

In other AbbVie news, EVP Perry C. Siatis sold 5,778 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $197.90, for a total transaction of $1,143,466.20. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 22,381 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,429,199.90. The trade was a 20.52 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Timothy J. Richmond sold 29,917 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $202.90, for a total value of $6,070,159.30. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 44,284 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,985,223.60. The trade was a 40.32 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 54,639 shares of company stock valued at $11,067,025 over the last ninety days. 0.25% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have weighed in on ABBV shares. Citigroup increased their target price on AbbVie from $205.00 to $215.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. 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 research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Raymond James reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $220.00 target price (up from $218.00) on shares of AbbVie in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Daiwa America lowered AbbVie from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, December 5th. Finally, Bank of America lifted their target price on AbbVie from $200.00 to $223.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 4th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have given a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $211.45.

AbbVie Company Profile

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.