Woodward Diversified Capital LLC Raises Stake in AbbVie Inc. (NYSE:ABBV)

Woodward Diversified Capital LLC grew its stake in shares of AbbVie Inc. (NYSE:ABBV) by 4.1% in the first quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 6,757 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 267 shares during the period. AbbVie accounts for approximately 1.0% of Woodward Diversified Capital LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 18th largest position. Woodward Diversified Capital LLC’s holdings in AbbVie were worth $1,416,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Abound Financial LLC bought a new stake in shares of AbbVie in the first quarter valued at about $30,000. EnRich Financial Partners LLC raised its holdings in AbbVie by 196.4% in the fourth quarter. EnRich Financial Partners LLC now owns 166 shares of the company’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 110 shares in the last quarter. Prudent Man Investment Management Inc. bought a new position in AbbVie in the fourth quarter worth about $32,000. Pinney & Scofield Inc. bought a new position in AbbVie in the fourth quarter worth about $36,000. Finally, Inlight Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in AbbVie in the first quarter worth about $42,000. 70.23% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

AbbVie Trading Up 2.2%

AbbVie stock opened at $190.53 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 0.76, a quick ratio of 0.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 44.14. AbbVie Inc. has a 12 month low of $163.81 and a 12 month high of $218.66. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $186.95 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $189.20. The firm has a market cap of $336.55 billion, a PE ratio of 81.08, a P/E/G ratio of 1.24 and a beta of 0.48.

AbbVie (NYSE:ABBV) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, April 25th. The company reported $2.46 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.40 by $0.06. AbbVie had a return on equity of 412.03% and a net margin of 7.31%. The business had revenue of $13.34 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $12.91 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $2.31 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 8.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts anticipate that AbbVie Inc. will post 12.31 earnings per share for the current year.

AbbVie Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, July 15th will be given a $1.64 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, July 15th. This represents a $6.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.44%. AbbVie’s dividend payout ratio is presently 279.15%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have commented on ABBV. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on shares of AbbVie from $241.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, April 28th. Citigroup boosted their target price on shares of AbbVie to $205.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, June 11th. Cantor Fitzgerald began coverage on AbbVie in a research note on Tuesday, April 22nd. They set an “overweight” rating and a $210.00 price target on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group restated a “neutral” rating and set a $194.00 price target on shares of AbbVie in a research note on Tuesday, April 8th. Finally, BNP Paribas upgraded AbbVie to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 8th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have issued a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $211.29.

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.