Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. Grows Stake in AbbVie Inc. (NYSE:ABBV)

Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of AbbVie Inc. (NYSE:ABBV) by 8.1% in the second quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 189,255 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 14,220 shares during the period. AbbVie accounts for 1.3% of Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd.’s holdings, making the stock its 8th biggest position. Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd.’s holdings in AbbVie were worth $32,461,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of ABBV. Fairway Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in AbbVie during the second quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Ridgewood Investments LLC acquired a new position in shares of AbbVie during the second quarter worth $27,000. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of AbbVie during the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. IFS Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of AbbVie during the 1st quarter valued at $36,000. Finally, Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of AbbVie in the 1st quarter worth $37,000. Institutional investors own 70.23% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have commented on the company. Barclays increased their price target on AbbVie from $187.00 to $200.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, July 26th. William Blair raised AbbVie to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, August 30th. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on AbbVie from $211.00 to $218.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, August 12th. Piper Sandler upped their target price on AbbVie from $196.00 to $209.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, August 23rd. Finally, Truist Financial reissued a “buy” rating and set a $210.00 price target (up from $195.00) on shares of AbbVie in a research report on Friday, July 26th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $191.64.

AbbVie Trading Down 1.1 %

ABBV stock opened at $193.50 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.71, a current ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 8.51. AbbVie Inc. has a 52-week low of $135.85 and a 52-week high of $199.95. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $187.92 and its 200-day simple moving average is $175.46. The firm has a market cap of $341.70 billion, a P/E ratio of 57.42, a PEG ratio of 2.66 and a beta of 0.64.

AbbVie (NYSE:ABBV) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 25th. The company reported $2.65 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.57 by $0.08. The company had revenue of $14.46 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $14.02 billion. AbbVie had a return on equity of 203.66% and a net margin of 9.71%. AbbVie’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $2.91 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts forecast that AbbVie Inc. will post 10.86 EPS for the current fiscal year.

AbbVie Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, October 15th will be issued a dividend of $1.55 per share. This represents a $6.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.20%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, October 15th. AbbVie’s payout ratio is 183.98%.

Insider Activity

In related news, Chairman Richard A. Gonzalez sold 282,845 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $175.00, for a total transaction of $49,497,875.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman now owns 513,099 shares in the company, valued at approximately $89,792,325. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In related news, Chairman Richard A. Gonzalez sold 66,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $186.52, for a total transaction of $12,403,580.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman now directly owns 446,599 shares in the company, valued at $83,299,645.48. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Chairman Richard A. Gonzalez sold 282,845 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $175.00, for a total value of $49,497,875.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman now directly owns 513,099 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $89,792,325. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.25% 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.