AbbVie (NYSE: ABBV) reports third-quarter 2026 results on Friday, October 30, 2026, before the market opens, with the earnings call and webcast at 8 a.m. Central time (9 a.m. Eastern). On October 5 the company already updated its guidance in an 8-K filing, because of a $216 million charge for acquired in-process R&D (IPR&D) in the quarter. This preview lines up the recent quarters against the same quarters a year earlier, works out what the guidance implies for the rest of 2026, and covers analyst consensus, the dividend and what to watch.
The recent quarters, each against the same quarter a year earlier
| Metric | Q3 2025 (vs Q3 2024) | Q4 2025 (vs Q4 2024) | Q1 2026 (vs Q1 2025) | Q2 2026 (vs Q2 2025) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Net revenues | $15,776 million (+9.1% from $14,460 million) | $16,618 million (+10.0% from $15,102 million) | $15,002 million (+12.4% from $13,343 million) | $16,990 million (+10.2% from $15,423 million) |
| Adjusted diluted EPS | $1.86 (from $3.00: -38.0%) | $2.71 (from $2.16: +25.5%) | $2.65 (from $2.46: +7.7%) | $3.65 (from $2.97: +22.9%) |
| Acquired IPR&D and milestones, impact on EPS (already included in adjusted EPS) | $1.50 per share (from $0.04) | $0.71 per share (from $0.88) | $0.41 per share (from $0.13) | $0.17 per share (from $0.42) |
| Skyrizi net revenues | $4,708 million (+46.8%) | $5,006 million (+32.5%) | $4,483 million (+30.9%) | $5,505 million (+24.4%) |
| Rinvoq net revenues | $2,184 million (+35.3%) | $2,374 million (+29.5%) | $2,119 million (+23.3%) | $2,525 million (+24.5%) |
| Aesthetics net revenues | $1,193 million (-3.7%) | $1,286 million (-0.9%) | $1,186 million (+7.6%) | $1,282 million (+0.3%) |
Sources: the four AbbVie earnings releases listed under Sources (Q3 2025 on October 31, 2025; Q4 2025 on February 4, 2026; Q1 2026 on April 29, 2026; Q2 2026 on July 31, 2026). Percentage changes are reported (not operational) growth as stated by the company; for Skyrizi, Rinvoq and Aesthetics the releases give the current-quarter amount and the percentage change, not the year-earlier dollar amount. The adjusted EPS change for Q4 2025 (+25.5%) is my calculation from the two figures. Adjusted EPS includes the IPR&D charges shown in the third row, which is why it swings from quarter to quarter: Q3 2025 carried $1.50 per share of them, Q2 2026 only $0.17. Reported (GAAP) EPS in Q2 2026 was $2.03 against $0.52 a year earlier, and $0.10 against $0.88 in Q3 2025.
Full-year guidance: four updates to the same metric
| Date | 2026 adjusted diluted EPS guidance | What the company said |
|---|---|---|
| February 4, 2026 | $14.37 to $14.57 | Excluded any IPR&D and milestones expense that might occur in 2026 |
| April 29, 2026 | $14.08 to $14.28 (from $13.96 to $14.16) | Includes the $0.41 per share of IPR&D incurred in Q1; excludes later charges |
| July 31, 2026 | $13.87 to $14.07 (from $13.91 to $14.11) | Includes $0.58 per share of IPR&D year to date and a $0.14 per share dilution from the proposed Apogee Therapeutics acquisition, partly offset by $0.10 of overperformance |
| October 5, 2026 (8-K) | $13.76 to $13.96; Q3 adjusted EPS $3.73 to $3.77 | Includes $216 million pre-tax of Q3 IPR&D and milestones expense, $0.11 per share; preliminary and subject to closing procedures |
Sources: the AbbVie releases of February 4, April 29 and July 31, 2026 and the 8-K dated October 5, 2026. The guidance falls with each update mainly because each one adds the IPR&D charges booked so far and leaves out any later ones. Adding back the $0.69 per share of IPR&D through Q3 ($0.58 plus $0.11), the October range corresponds to about $14.45 to $14.65 before those charges, against $14.37 to $14.57 in February (my calculation). Before the October update, the July guidance for Q3 was $3.84 to $3.88; the $0.11 charge accounts for the difference.
What the guidance implies for the second half (my calculation)
| Item | Amount |
|---|---|
| Adjusted EPS, full year 2025 (company) | $10.00 |
| Adjusted EPS, first half 2025 (Q1 $2.46 + Q2 $2.97) | $5.43 |
| Adjusted EPS, second half 2025 (Q3 $1.86 + Q4 $2.71) | $4.57 |
| Adjusted EPS, first half 2026 (Q1 $2.65 + Q2 $3.65) | $6.30 (+16.0% vs first half 2025) |
| Full-year 2026 guidance (October 5) | $13.76 to $13.96 |
| Implied second half 2026 | $7.46 to $7.66 |
| Implied growth, second half 2026 vs second half 2025, as reported | +63.2% to +67.6% |
| Second half excluding IPR&D (2025: $2.21 per share; 2026: only the $0.11 in Q3, since the guidance excludes later charges) | $7.57 to $7.77 vs $6.78: about +11.7% to +14.6% |
The very large reported growth is mostly the effect of the IPR&D charges: the second half of 2025 carried $1.50 in Q3 and $0.71 in Q4, while 2026 guidance includes only $0.11, and any charge booked in Q4 would reduce the figure. If Q3 lands within its guided $3.73 to $3.77, the full-year range leaves roughly $3.69 to $3.93 for the fourth quarter, against $2.71 in Q4 2025 (about +36% to +45% as reported, or about +8% to +15% adding back the $0.71 of Q4 2025 IPR&D). These are my own calculations from company figures; the company does not publish a quarter-by-quarter forecast beyond Q3.
What analysts expect, and the share price
This section uses third-party data, which is not from the company; each figure carries its source and date. Consensus is for the same quarter, compared with the same quarter a year earlier.
| Q3 metric | Consensus for Q3 2026 | Q3 2025 actual (company) | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Adjusted EPS | $3.74 (MarketBeat, October 23, 2026); $3.78 (Yahoo Finance pre-earnings article, no date shown in my copy). Company guidance: $3.73 to $3.77 | $1.86 | about +101% to +103% |
| Net revenues | $17.36 billion (MarketBeat, October 23, 2026); $17.35 billion (Yahoo Finance) | $15,776 million | about +10.0% |
The comparison is distorted by the $1.50 per share of IPR&D in Q3 2025. Adding back the IPR&D on both sides, the guided $3.73 to $3.77 becomes $3.84 to $3.88 against $3.36, about +14.3% to +15.5% (my calculation).
On Friday, October 23, 2026, ABBV opened at $284.59, within a 52-week range of $190.75 to $291.40 (source: MarketBeat, October 23, 2026; an opening price, not a close). Yahoo Finance noted that options were pricing a move of roughly 5% in either direction on the release. MarketBeat’s average analyst price target on that date was $278.07, with 1 Strong Buy, 23 Buy and 6 Hold ratings. Against the October 5 full-year guidance, this gives (my calculation):
| Measure | Value |
|---|---|
| Share price (open, Oct 23, 2026) | $284.59 |
| Price to 2026 adjusted EPS guidance of $13.76 to $13.96 | about 20.4x to 20.7x |
| Quarterly dividend of $1.73, $6.92 a year | yield about 2.4% on the price above |
| Annual dividend as a share of guided adjusted EPS | about 50% |
Price and consensus move daily, so check both with your broker before the release. MarketBeat shows a payout ratio of 195.5%, which is calculated on reported (GAAP) earnings, depressed by IPR&D and acquisition-related charges, rather than on the adjusted guidance used here.
What to watch on October 30
- Adjusted EPS against $1.86 a year earlier, the $3.73 to $3.77 guidance and the $3.74 to $3.78 consensus. The company has already told investors what the IPR&D charge is, so attention shifts to the underlying business and any change to the full-year range.
- Skyrizi and Rinvoq. Skyrizi grew 24.4% to $5,505 million and Rinvoq 24.5% to $2,525 million in Q2 2026. Reported growth has slowed over the last four quarters, from +46.8% (Skyrizi) and +35.3% (Rinvoq) in Q3 2025, as the year-earlier base gets larger (my observation).
- Aesthetics. Net revenues were +0.3% in Q2 2026 (-0.9% operational) after +7.6% in Q1 and -0.9% in Q4 2025.
- New IPR&D charges. The guidance leaves out any such expense after Q3, so new licensing deals or acquisitions would change adjusted EPS.
- The Apogee Therapeutics acquisition, which the company said in July was expected to close in Q3. It closed on September 3, 2026 for about $10.9 billion, and AbbVie expects it to reduce adjusted EPS by $0.14 in 2026 and about $0.46 in 2027, according to Nasdaq’s report on the deal (third-party source). Watch for any update to those figures and to interest expense.
- Pipeline. A Hudson Labs preview dated October 6, 2026 (third-party) lists an FDA decision on Skyrizi subcutaneous induction in Crohn’s disease expected in Q4 and Phase III hidradenitis suppurativa readouts for lutikizumab and Rinvoq in the second half of 2026. Neither is confirmed by the company in the releases reviewed here.
- The dividend. See the next section.
The dividend
On September 10, 2026, AbbVie declared a quarterly dividend of $1.73 per share ($6.92 a year), the same rate as the previous quarter. The record date was October 15, 2026 and it is payable on November 16, 2026, so buying shares now does not earn this payment. The company says it has raised the dividend by more than 330% since its 2013 inception and is a member of the S&P Dividend Aristocrats Index. Last year the increase was announced in the Q3 results release itself: on October 31, 2025 the quarterly dividend rose 5.5% from $1.64 to $1.73, payable February 17, 2026 to shareholders of record on January 16, 2026. Whether the same happens this year is not known until the company announces it.
For investors in Europe
- ABBV pays in U.S. dollars, and U.S. withholding tax applies by default; the rate for non-U.S. investors depends on your broker having a valid Form W-8BEN. See our W-8BEN guide.
- The dollar and euro exchange rate moves the euro value of the dividend independently of anything AbbVie reports.
Sources
- AbbVie: Q3 2026 earnings conference call notice (October 1, 2026)
- AbbVie: Form 8-K with Q3 IPR&D charge and updated guidance (October 5, 2026)
- AbbVie: Q2 2026 results (July 31, 2026)
- AbbVie: Q1 2026 results (April 29, 2026)
- AbbVie: Q4 and full-year 2025 results and 2026 guidance (February 4, 2026)
- AbbVie: Q3 2025 results and dividend increase (October 31, 2025)
- AbbVie: quarterly dividend declaration (September 10, 2026)
- Third-party data (consensus, price and news), not from the company: MarketBeat (October 23, 2026); Yahoo Finance (pre-earnings options article); Nasdaq (Apogee acquisition completed); Hudson Labs (October 6, 2026)
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Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute investment advice. Company figures are taken from the releases listed; consensus, price and news items come from the third-party sources listed, as of the dates stated; and the second-half, fourth-quarter, ex-IPR&D and valuation figures are my own arithmetic, not a company forecast. Confirm current figures with your broker or the company’s investor relations page. Investing involves risk, including the possible loss of capital, and a dividend payment is never guaranteed.
