Citi Says AbbVie Is Now A Buy

Citi's Andrew Baum upgraded the rating for AbbVie Inc (NYSE: ABBV) from Neutral to Buy, while raising the price target from $56 to $65. He mentioned that the markets seem to be underestimating the probability that the company's Humira dosing patients will "prove resilient" in the ongoing IPR process in the US and patent prosecution in the EU.

The risk/reward for AbbVie's stock is good at the current levels, Baum said. While there are certain potential weaknesses in AbbVie's patent prosecution, the company has a good chance of obtaining issuance of its EU patent equivalent for a second time.

"Securing both US and EU outcomes would significantly increase the AbbVie's probability of obtaining an injunction delaying biosimilar launches in RA although launch of skinny label biosimilar is possible," the Citi report stated.