How About Ten Percent More?

ABBV’s Dividend Payout Ratio is sustainable

When it was time for my “annual increase” during my career, I would be pleased with a 3-4% increase. Sometimes I would receive more than that. Those were pleasant surprises. Given the needs of our family and the impacts of inflation, an increase at least helped us maintain our living and giving. It was rare to receive a 10% increase unless I moved to a new job at a different company.

Abbvie Is a Powerhouse of Pharmaceuticals

If you watch any television, you probably have seen advertisements for at least two of ABBV’s products. AbbVie Inc. discovers, develops, manufactures, and sells pharmaceuticals internationally. The company’s drugs include HUMIRA, a therapy administered as an injection for autoimmune and intestinal Behcet’s diseases and SKYRIZI to treat moderate to severe plaque psoriasis in adults. But these are only the tip of their list of products. Some of Abbvie’s other solutions include RINVOQ, IMBRUVICA, VENCLEXTA, VIEKIRA PAK, TECHNIVIE, SYNAGIS, CREON, and ORILISSA. The company was incorporated in 2012 and is based in North Chicago, Illinois.

Reviewing ABBV with some Seeking Alpha and Fidelity Screen Shots

Holding ABBV shares can make some investors nervous. As you can see in the next image, the shares fell quite a bit in the last 52 weeks, but they have since recovered nicely. Patience is often rewarded if you are a long-term dividend growth investor. Even when the share price was depressed the dividends were still paid. Be patient and collect the dividends.

Those who sold at the 52-Week Low weren’t thinking clearly. (Fidelity)
This is the Seeking Alpha email that told me about the dividend increase.

Dividend History tells part of the story. But don’t miss the dividend growth story.

History shows the sharp growth of ABBV’s dividend.
The 3-year and 5-year growth are much better than most investments offer.

Full Disclosure

Cindie and I own 650 shares of ABBV as a long-term investment. As a result, it is in the top ten investments we hold. The other top ten companies are: ABBV, ARCC, MAIN, MPW, O, PFE, T, VLO, and one ETF: VYM. This is not a recommendation for you to buy any of these, but they give insights into what I like.