AbbVie (NYSE:ABBV) Shares Gap Down – Here’s What Happened

Shares of AbbVie Inc. (NYSE:ABBV) gapped down prior to trading on Monday . The stock had previously closed at $199.50, but opened at $178.57. AbbVie shares last traded at $175.05, with a volume of 4,343,740 shares changing hands.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts recently commented on ABBV shares. Barclays lifted their price target on AbbVie from $200.00 to $212.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, October 7th. Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $200.00 target price on shares of AbbVie in a research report on Monday, August 5th. Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on shares of AbbVie from $231.00 to $224.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday. Argus upgraded AbbVie from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, November 4th. Finally, Bank of America lifted their price objective on AbbVie from $185.00 to $195.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, October 18th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $204.06.

AbbVie Price Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of $302.36 billion, a PE ratio of 59.41, a PEG ratio of 2.12 and a beta of 0.63. The company has a 50-day moving average of $194.14 and a 200 day moving average of $180.83. The company has a quick ratio of 0.54, a current ratio of 0.65 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 9.64.

AbbVie (NYSE:ABBV) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 30th. The company reported $3.00 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.92 by $0.08. AbbVie had a net margin of 9.22% and a return on equity of 244.01%. The business had revenue of $14.46 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.28 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $2.95 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts predict that AbbVie Inc. will post 10.95 EPS for the current year.

AbbVie Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 14th. Investors of record on Wednesday, January 15th will be given a $1.64 dividend. This is an increase from AbbVie’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.55. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, January 15th. This represents a $6.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.83%. AbbVie’s dividend payout ratio is 215.28%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On AbbVie

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Fairway Wealth LLC purchased a new position in shares of AbbVie during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $26,000. Ridgewood Investments LLC acquired a new position in AbbVie during the second quarter worth about $27,000. Quest Partners LLC increased its holdings in AbbVie by 4,140.0% in the second quarter. Quest Partners LLC now owns 212 shares of the company’s stock valued at $36,000 after buying an additional 207 shares in the last quarter. Marquette Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of AbbVie during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $39,000. Finally, Mizuho Securities Co. Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of AbbVie by 100.0% during the 3rd quarter. Mizuho Securities Co. Ltd. now owns 200 shares of the company’s stock worth $39,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. 70.23% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.