Ilmarinen Mutual Pension Insurance Co Raises Stake in AbbVie Inc. (NYSE:ABBV)

Ilmarinen Mutual Pension Insurance Co lifted its position in AbbVie Inc. (NYSE:ABBV) by 29.7% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 277,500 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 63,500 shares during the quarter. AbbVie comprises about 0.4% of Ilmarinen Mutual Pension Insurance Co’s holdings, making the stock its 26th biggest holding. Ilmarinen Mutual Pension Insurance Co’s holdings in AbbVie were worth $49,312,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of ABBV. Russell Investments Group Ltd. grew its holdings in shares of AbbVie by 3.4% during the 4th quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 1,189,286 shares of the company’s stock worth $211,257,000 after purchasing an additional 38,684 shares during the period. Rahlfs Capital LLC acquired a new position in AbbVie during the fourth quarter worth $1,335,000. Hurley Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of AbbVie in the fourth quarter valued at $139,000. Perennial Investment Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of AbbVie by 15.8% in the 4th quarter. Perennial Investment Advisors LLC now owns 3,882 shares of the company’s stock valued at $690,000 after buying an additional 530 shares during the period. Finally, Grantham Mayo Van Otterloo & Co. LLC boosted its holdings in AbbVie by 17.1% during the 4th quarter. Grantham Mayo Van Otterloo & Co. LLC now owns 7,233 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,285,000 after acquiring an additional 1,054 shares during the period. 70.23% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

AbbVie Stock Down 7.5 %

Shares of ABBV opened at $186.58 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $330.06 billion, a PE ratio of 77.74, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.62 and a beta of 0.61. The company has a quick ratio of 0.55, a current ratio of 0.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 17.94. The company’s fifty day moving average is $200.61 and its two-hundred day moving average is $189.24. AbbVie Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $153.58 and a fifty-two week high of $218.66.

AbbVie (NYSE:ABBV) last issued its earnings results on Friday, January 31st. The company reported $2.16 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.98 by ($0.82). AbbVie had a return on equity of 296.28% and a net margin of 7.59%. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $2.79 EPS. Analysts forecast that AbbVie Inc. will post 12.31 earnings per share for the current year.

AbbVie Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 15th. Investors 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 yield of 3.52%. AbbVie’s dividend payout ratio is currently 273.33%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, SVP Kevin K. Buckbee sold 18,944 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $203.41, for a total value of $3,853,399.04. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 11,496 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,338,401.36. This trade represents a 62.23 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Jeffrey Ryan Stewart sold 58,832 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, March 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $210.08, for a total value of $12,359,426.56. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 53,234 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $11,183,398.72. The trade was a 52.50 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 113,471 shares of company stock valued at $23,426,451 over the last three months. Company insiders own 0.08% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on ABBV. Raymond James restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $220.00 price objective (up previously from $218.00) on shares of AbbVie in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Citigroup increased their price objective on AbbVie from $205.00 to $215.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Bank of America upped their price target on AbbVie from $200.00 to $223.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 4th. Guggenheim raised their target price on AbbVie from $212.00 to $214.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, Piper Sandler Companies reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $220.00 price target on shares of AbbVie in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. Five 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. According to MarketBeat.com, AbbVie currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price 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.