Byrne Asset Management LLC Trims Stake in AbbVie Inc. (NYSE:ABBV)

Byrne Asset Management LLC cut its stake in AbbVie Inc. (NYSE:ABBV) by 8.0% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 2,005 shares of the company’s stock after selling 175 shares during the period. Byrne Asset Management LLC’s holdings in AbbVie were worth $420,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in ABBV. EnRich Financial Partners LLC lifted its stake 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 during the last quarter. Promus Capital LLC bought a new position in AbbVie in the fourth quarter worth about $30,000. Bradley & Co. Private Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in AbbVie in the fourth quarter worth about $31,000. Prudent Man Investment Management Inc. purchased a new stake in AbbVie in the fourth quarter worth about $32,000. Finally, Siemens Fonds Invest GmbH grew its holdings in AbbVie by 197.6% in the fourth quarter. Siemens Fonds Invest GmbH now owns 179,440 shares of the company’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 119,141 shares during the period. 70.23% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently commented on ABBV. Citigroup increased their price target on shares of AbbVie to $205.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on shares of AbbVie from $241.00 to $250.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, April 28th. The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $194.00 price target on shares of AbbVie in a report on Tuesday, April 8th. Guggenheim increased their price target on shares of AbbVie from $214.00 to $216.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 29th. Finally, BNP Paribas upgraded shares of AbbVie to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, May 8th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have assigned a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $211.29.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Jeffrey Ryan Stewart sold 58,832 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $210.08, for a total transaction of $12,359,426.56. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 53,234 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,183,398.72. This trade represents a 52.50% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Insiders own 0.25% of the company’s stock.

AbbVie Stock Down 0.9%

ABBV opened at $190.67 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.66, a quick ratio of 0.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 17.94. AbbVie Inc. has a 1-year low of $163.52 and a 1-year high of $218.66. The company has a market capitalization of $336.80 billion, a PE ratio of 79.45, a PEG ratio of 1.62 and a beta of 0.50. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $184.21 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $187.49.

AbbVie (NYSE:ABBV) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, April 25th. The company reported $2.46 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.40 by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $13.34 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $12.91 billion. AbbVie had a net margin of 7.59% and a return on equity of 296.28%. The company’s revenue was up 8.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $2.31 EPS. As a group, equities analysts forecast that AbbVie Inc. will post 12.31 EPS for the current year.

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.