Meritage Portfolio Management Sells 536 Shares of AbbVie Inc. (NYSE:ABBV)

Meritage Portfolio Management decreased its holdings in AbbVie Inc. (NYSE:ABBV) by 1.6% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 32,999 shares of the company’s stock after selling 536 shares during the quarter. Meritage Portfolio Management’s holdings in AbbVie were worth $5,864,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. AMF Tjanstepension AB purchased a new position in AbbVie during the 3rd quarter worth $8,777,000. Czech National Bank lifted its stake in AbbVie by 6.9% during the 3rd quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 359,823 shares of the company’s stock valued at $71,058,000 after acquiring an additional 23,320 shares during the period. Greenfield Savings Bank lifted its position in AbbVie by 0.8% during the third quarter. Greenfield Savings Bank now owns 17,856 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,526,000 after purchasing an additional 141 shares during the period. Versant Capital Management Inc boosted its stake in shares of AbbVie by 43.2% in the third quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 2,042 shares of the company’s stock worth $403,000 after buying an additional 616 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Chapin Davis Inc. boosted its position in AbbVie by 2.3% in the 3rd quarter. Chapin Davis Inc. now owns 9,627 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,901,000 after purchasing an additional 215 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.23% of the company’s stock.

AbbVie Stock Down 0.1 %

Shares of ABBV opened at $189.97 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 9.64, a quick ratio of 0.54 and a current ratio of 0.65. The stock has a market capitalization of $335.71 billion, a PE ratio of 79.16, a P/E/G ratio of 1.84 and a beta of 0.58. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $177.01 and its 200-day simple moving average is $185.38. AbbVie Inc. has a 1 year low of $153.58 and a 1 year high of $207.32.

AbbVie (NYSE:ABBV) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 31st. The company reported $2.16 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.98 by ($0.82). AbbVie had a net margin of 7.59% and a return on equity of 257.91%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $2.79 earnings per share. Analysts forecast that AbbVie Inc. will post 12.26 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

ABBV has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Wolfe Research initiated coverage on AbbVie in a research report on Friday, November 15th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $205.00 target price on the stock. Leerink Partnrs upgraded AbbVie from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. Daiwa America downgraded AbbVie from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on AbbVie from $210.00 to $200.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, November 13th. Finally, Leerink Partners raised AbbVie from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $206.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, AbbVie presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $208.35.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, SVP Kevin K. Buckbee sold 1,800 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, December 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $172.24, for a total transaction of $310,032.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 6,983 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,202,751.92. The trade was a 20.49 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.25% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.