Verity Asset Management Inc. Grows Stock Position in AbbVie Inc. (NYSE:ABBV)

Verity Asset Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of AbbVie Inc. (NYSE:ABBV) by 19.6% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 2,098 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 344 shares during the period. Verity Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in AbbVie were worth $360,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. GGM Financials LLC grew its stake in AbbVie by 0.7% in the 3rd quarter. GGM Financials LLC now owns 6,895 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,362,000 after acquiring an additional 50 shares during the last quarter. Pine Haven Investment Counsel Inc lifted its holdings in shares of AbbVie by 0.3% in the third quarter. Pine Haven Investment Counsel Inc now owns 18,102 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,575,000 after purchasing an additional 52 shares in the last quarter. Dillon & Associates Inc. grew its position in shares of AbbVie by 0.8% in the third quarter. Dillon & Associates Inc. now owns 6,914 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,362,000 after purchasing an additional 52 shares during the last quarter. Sunflower Bank N.A. increased its stake in shares of AbbVie by 0.4% during the 3rd quarter. Sunflower Bank N.A. now owns 13,723 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,710,000 after purchasing an additional 53 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Professional Financial Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of AbbVie by 3.4% during the 3rd quarter. Professional Financial Advisors LLC now owns 1,638 shares of the company’s stock worth $323,000 after purchasing an additional 54 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.23% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other AbbVie news, SVP Kevin K. Buckbee sold 1,800 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $172.24, for a total transaction of $310,032.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 6,983 shares in the company, valued at $1,202,751.92. This trade represents a 20.49 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 0.25% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

AbbVie Stock Performance

NYSE:ABBV opened at $190.20 on Tuesday. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $176.57 and its 200 day simple moving average is $185.13. The company has a current ratio of 0.65, a quick ratio of 0.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 9.64. AbbVie Inc. has a twelve month low of $153.58 and a twelve month high of $207.32. The firm has a market capitalization of $336.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 79.25, a PEG ratio of 1.84 and a beta of 0.58.

AbbVie (NYSE:ABBV) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 31st. The company reported $2.16 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.98 by ($0.82). AbbVie had a return on equity of 257.91% and a net margin of 7.59%. During the same period last year, the firm posted $2.79 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts expect that AbbVie Inc. will post 12.26 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Wolfe Research initiated coverage on AbbVie in a report on Friday, November 15th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $205.00 price target for the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on shares of AbbVie from $210.00 to $200.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, November 13th. Leerink Partnrs raised shares of AbbVie from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, November 22nd. Sanford C. Bernstein started coverage on shares of AbbVie in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. They set a “market perform” rating and a $203.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Daiwa Capital Markets downgraded AbbVie from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $180.00 price target for the company. in a report on Thursday, December 5th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, AbbVie presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $208.35.

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.