NEW YORK, Jan 9, 2026, 12:28 PM EST — Regular session
AbbVie Inc (ABBV) shares fell about 0.8% in midday New York trade on Friday after the drugmaker trimmed its 2025 profit outlook and brushed off a report tying it to a takeover of cancer biotech Revolution Medicines.
The stock was down $1.78 at $222.35. AbbVie said in an emailed statement that it “is not in discussions with Revolution Medicines” and has spent more than $20 billion on acquisitions since 2023 as it tries to replace sales lost after Humira’s U.S. patent protection ended. (Reuters)
The warning lands just ahead of the annual J.P. Morgan Healthcare Conference in San Francisco, a week when CEOs and bankers trade deal ideas and investors hunt for the next growth driver. Speculation around Revolution and other targets has already jolted biotech valuations, even without signed term sheets. (Reuters)
At the center is a chunky line item that usually sits outside routine guidance: acquired IPR&D, short for acquired in-process research and development. It covers upfront payments and milestone fees tied to buying or licensing drug candidates, and it can swing quarterly earnings.
In a Form 8-K filing, AbbVie said it expects a $1.3 billion pre-tax acquired IPR&D and milestones expense in the fourth quarter, an unfavorable impact of $0.71 on both GAAP earnings (standard accounting) and adjusted results, which strip out selected items. AbbVie said it does not forecast those costs because the timing is uncertain.
The company now sees fourth-quarter adjusted earnings per share (EPS) of $2.61 to $2.65, down from its prior view of $3.32 to $3.36, while full-year adjusted EPS is expected at $9.90 to $9.94. AbbVie cautioned that its results for the quarter ended Dec. 31, 2025 are not yet final. (SEC)
On Wall Street, Wolfe Research downgraded AbbVie to “Peer Perform” from “Outperform” without a price target, saying the shares already reflect expectations for strong sales of newer immunology drugs Skyrizi and Rinvoq, according to TheFly. (TipRanks)
But the timing risk is real: more licensing or acquisitions can bring more one-off expenses, and investors rarely get much warning. If competitive pressure bites harder than expected in immunology, the market may be less willing to look through those swings.
Investors will parse next week’s comments out of San Francisco for any fresh hints on AbbVie’s deal appetite, but the bigger test comes on Feb. 4, when the drugmaker is due to report full-year and fourth-quarter results before the market opens. (Abbvie)
