AbbVie was spunoff from Abbott Labs at the beginning of 2013. Photo: Flickr.com/Franciscan University
About AbbVie
AbbVie was founded on January 1st, 2013 as a spinoff from Abbott Laboratories. In the spinoff, Abbott Labs retained the portfolio of health care products for consumers and the health care industry, while AbbVie is focused on advanced drug research. AbbVie has 25,000 employees that deliver products that are sold in over 170 countries around the world.
AbbVie is developing drugs in the following specific areas: Immunology, Kidney Disease, Liver Disease, Neuroscience, Oncology, and Women’s Health. AbbVie maintains research centers in North Chicago, IL; Worcester, MA; Redwood City, CA; Ludwigshafen, Germany; and Shanghai, China.
The company is a member of the S&P 500 index and trades under the ticker symbol ABBV.
AbbVie’s Dividend and Stock Split History
AbbVie inherited Abbott Labs’ dividend history as a result of the spinoff at the beginning of 2013 for the purposes of being classified as an S&P 500 Dividend Aristocrat. AbbVie usually announces its annual dividend increase in October, with the stock going ex-dividend in January.
AbbVie has compounded its payout at an average rate of 17.5% over the last 5 years.
AbbVie has not split its stock since separating from Abbott Labs.
Direct Purchase and Dividend Reinvestment Plans
AbbVie has both direct purchase and dividend reinvestment plans. Investors interested in participating in either of these plans can find information at ComputerShare’s Investment Plan site. There is a cost of $10 to establish a direct purchase and dividend reinvestment plan account with ComputerShare. If you’re interested in directly purchasing AbbVie stock, the minimum purchase is $250 when investing by check or 10 monthly purchases of $25 when investing by automatic debit.
From a fee standpoint, AbbVie has made the plans very friendly to investors. There are no fees for purchasing shares through the direct purchase plan, as AbbVie pays both the transaction and per share fees on your behalf. AbbVie also pays all your fees for purchases when reinvesting dividends in additional shares.
When you go to sell your shares in the plan, you’ll pay a transaction fee of 15 cents per share. There’s an additional fee of $25 if you request that your shares be sold in a market order instead of a batch order. The plan administrator deducts the fees from the proceeds of the sale.
Helpful Links
AbbVie’s Investor Relations Website
Current quote and financial summary for AbbVie (finviz.com)
Information on the direct purchase and dividend reinvestment plans for ABBV