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Agilent Technologies, Inc. (A) vs AbbVie Inc. (ABBV): Which Is the Better Buy in 2026?

As of 2026-11-01, A is overvalued at $175, with a DCF intrinsic value of $95 and a margin of safety of -83%. ABBV is overvalued at $295, with an intrinsic value of $172 and a margin of safety of -71%. Of the two, ABBV has the wider margin of safety.

A
Agilent Technologies, Inc.
$174.87
VS
ABBV
AbbVie Inc.
$294.89

Rewards

A
  • ★Agilent Technologies, Inc. has maintained ROIC above 10% for 4 consecutive years, suggesting solid business economics.
  • ★Agilent Technologies, Inc. scores 77/100 on the Economic Moat Score (Wide Moat), with roic consistency as the strongest competitive dimension.
  • ★Altman Z-Score of 5.15 indicates very low bankruptcy risk — the company is firmly in the safe zone.
ABBV
  • ★AbbVie Inc. has maintained ROIC above 10% for 4 consecutive years, suggesting solid business economics.
  • ★Gross margin of 73.7% indicates strong pricing power — typical of businesses with significant intellectual property or brand strength.
  • ★AbbVie Inc. scores 82/100 on the Economic Moat Score (Wide Moat), with reinvestment efficiency as the strongest competitive dimension.

Risks

A
  • ⚠Each dollar of retained earnings has produced only $0.08 of earning power — shareholders may have been better served by dividends.
  • ⚠FCF yield of 2.2% is below 3%, meaning the market is pricing in substantial future growth to justify the current price.
ABBV
  • ⚠Buybacks have been poorly timed — 3 out of 4 years involved repurchases at relatively expensive valuations.
  • ⚠Insiders have sold $8.2M worth of stock in the past 3 months — significant insider liquidation.
  • ⚠Free cash flow has declined at a 9.8% CAGR over the past 4 years — a concerning trend.

Key Valuation Metrics

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A
ABBV
Valuation
$1.06B
Free Cash Flow
N/A
2.15%
FCF Yield
N/A
34.49
Trailing P/E
50.67
25.99
Forward P/E
18.24
Quality & Moat
12.93%
ROIC
29.08%
20.97%
ROE
N/A
53.65%
Gross Margin
73.72%
1.48
PEG Ratio
0.60
Balance Sheet Safety
0.32
Net Debt / Equity
N/A
N/A
Interest Coverage
N/A
1.15
Net Debt / EBITDA
2.03
0.58%
Dividend Yield
2.35%
A: 2Ties: 1ABBV: 5
AABBV

Historical Fundamentals

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A

Price ÷ Earnings Per Share — how many years of current earnings you're paying for at today's price. Lower P/E may indicate undervaluation. The dashed forward point is the forward P/E — today's price ÷ analyst consensus EPS.

ABBV

Price ÷ Earnings Per Share — how many years of current earnings you're paying for at today's price. Lower P/E may indicate undervaluation. The dashed forward point is the forward P/E — today's price ÷ analyst consensus EPS.

Price ÷ Earnings Per Share — how many years of current earnings you're paying for at today's price. Lower P/E may indicate undervaluation. The dashed forward point is the forward P/E — today's price ÷ analyst consensus EPS.

$1 Retained Earnings Test

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A
$-1.87
created per $1 retained over 3 years
Market Cap Declined
Σ Retained
$3.01B
Δ Market Cap
$-5.63B
Buffett's "$1 Test": For every $1 of earnings retained, has management created at least $1 of market value?
> $1 created per $1 retained = Value Creator · < $1 created = Value Destroyer
ABBV
N/A
Net losses over 3 years — test not applicable
Company had negative cumulative retained earnings
Σ Retained
$-19.85B
Δ Market Cap
+$118.02B
Buffett's "$1 Test": For every $1 of earnings retained, has management created at least $1 of market value?
> $1 created per $1 retained = Value Creator · < $1 created = Value Destroyer

Buffett's "$1 Test": For every $1 of earnings retained, has management created at least $1 of market value?
> $1 created per $1 retained = Value Creator · < $1 created = Value Destroyer

Discounted Cash Flow (DCF) Analysis

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A
83.3% Overvalued
Price is 83.3% above estimated fair value
Current Price: $174.87
Fair Value: $95.38
Strongly undervalued
Undervalued
Fairly valued
Overvalued
Strongly overvalued
ABBV
71.5% Overvalued
Price is 71.5% above estimated fair value
Current Price: $294.89
Fair Value: $172.00
Strongly undervalued
Undervalued
Fairly valued
Overvalued
Strongly overvalued

Reverse DCF — Market-Implied Growth

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A

What growth rate is the market pricing in at $175?

+17.0%
Market-Implied Owner Earnings Growth
Standard FCF implies +19.9%

The market implies +17.0% Owner Earnings growth, above historical trends.

Standard FCF implies a demanding +19.9%, reflecting heavy growth investment.

ABBV

Requires positive FCF to compute implied growth rate.

Economic Moat Score

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A
77/100
Wide Moat
70+ Wide · 40-69 Narrow · <40 None

Wide moat with strength across all dimensions. ROIC Consistency is the standout factor.

Composite score measuring competitive advantage durability across four dimensions: returns above cost of capital, pricing power stability, revenue predictability, and capital efficiency. Based on 4 years of fundamental data.
ABBV
82/100
Wide Moat
70+ Wide · 40-69 Narrow · <40 None

Wide moat with strength across all dimensions. Reinvestment Efficiency is the standout factor.

Composite score measuring competitive advantage durability across four dimensions: returns above cost of capital, pricing power stability, revenue predictability, and capital efficiency. Based on 4 years of fundamental data.

Forensic Accounting

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A
-2.45
Unlikely Manipulator
Above -1.78 = likely manipulator · -2.22 to -1.78 = grey zone

M-Score Trend

Beneish's 8-variable model estimates the probability of earnings manipulation. An M-Score above -1.78 signals elevated risk — companies in this range have historically been 3-5× more likely to be manipulating earnings. Scores between -2.22 and -1.78 fall in a grey zone warranting further investigation.
ABBV
-2.86
Unlikely Manipulator
Above -1.78 = likely manipulator · -2.22 to -1.78 = grey zone

M-Score Trend

Beneish's 8-variable model estimates the probability of earnings manipulation. An M-Score above -1.78 signals elevated risk — companies in this range have historically been 3-5× more likely to be manipulating earnings. Scores between -2.22 and -1.78 fall in a grey zone warranting further investigation.

Beneish's 8-variable model estimates the probability of earnings manipulation. An M-Score above -1.78 signals elevated risk — companies in this range have historically been 3-5× more likely to be manipulating earnings. Scores between -2.22 and -1.78 fall in a grey zone warranting further investigation.

Ownership Breakdown

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A
Insiders 0.2%Institutions 95.3%Retail & Other 4.5%
No. of Institutional Holders1,664
High insider ownership aligns management incentives with shareholders — a key signal in Buffett-style analysis. Institutional concentration can indicate smart-money conviction but also crowding risk.
ABBV
Insiders 0.1%Institutions 77.4%Retail & Other 22.5%
No. of Institutional Holders5,303
High insider ownership aligns management incentives with shareholders — a key signal in Buffett-style analysis. Institutional concentration can indicate smart-money conviction but also crowding risk.

High insider ownership aligns management incentives with shareholders. Institutional concentration can indicate smart-money conviction but also crowding risk.

Insider Buying Activity

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A
0
Buys (3M)
0
Buys (12M)
No open market insider purchases found.
Open market purchases · includes direct & indirect ownership · excludes option exercises
ABBV
0
Buys (3M)
0
Buys (12M)
No open market insider purchases found.
Open market purchases · includes direct & indirect ownership · excludes option exercises

Open market purchases · includes direct & indirect ownership · excludes option exercises.

Insider Selling Activity

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A
1
Sells (3M)
6
Sells (12M)
Total value (12M): $3.17M
DOLSTEN MIKAEL
Director
$95,972
@ $151.38 · 2026-09-04
DOLSTEN MIKAEL
Director
$216,672
@ $135.42 · 2026-05-29
DOLSTEN MIKAEL
Director
$389,511
@ $149.81 · 2025-12-01
GONSALVES RODNEY
Officer
$464,956
@ $154.99 · 2025-11-26
MCDONNELL PADRAIG
Chief Executive Officer
$130,492
@ $143.24 · 2025-11-18
MCDONNELL PADRAIG
Chief Executive Officer
$1.87M
@ $150.00 · 2025-11-12
MCDONNELL PADRAIG
Chief Executive Officer
$249,760
@ $124.88 · 2025-09-02
MCDONNELL PADRAIG
Chief Executive Officer
$226,900
@ $113.45 · 2025-08-01
MCDONNELL PADRAIG
Chief Executive Officer
$177,100
@ $117.44 · 2025-07-01
BROWN JUDY LYNNE GAWLIK
Director
$904.00
@ $129.14 · 2025-06-18
PODOLSKY DANIEL K
Director
$211,844
@ $116.46 · 2025-03-31
GONSALVES RODNEY
Officer
$232,691
@ $122.02 · 2025-03-17
RATAJ SUE H
Director
$881,009
@ $126.38 · 2025-03-06
MCDONNELL PADRAIG
Chief Executive Officer
$286,650
@ $150.00 · 2025-01-21
Direct ownership only · excludes indirect, option exercises, planned (10b5-1) sales & derivatives
ABBV
1
Sells (3M)
4
Sells (12M)
Total value (12M): $18.92M
DONOGHOE NICHOLAS
Officer
$8.18M
@ $250.00 · 2026-08-14
PURDUE DAVID RYAN
Officer
$1.22M
@ $233.56 · 2026-03-04
SIATIS PERRY C.
General Counsel
$4.38M
@ $234.39 · 2026-03-02
SIATIS PERRY C.
General Counsel
$5.15M
@ $230.00 · 2026-02-25
SALEKI-GERHARDT AZITA
Chief Operating Officer
$8.41M
@ $198.42 · 2025-08-12
DONOGHOE NICHOLAS
Officer
$2.64M
@ $198.51 · 2025-08-05
STEWART JEFFREY RYAN
Officer
$12.36M
@ $210.08 · 2025-03-31
REENTS SCOTT T.
Chief Financial Officer
$3.75M
@ $212.34 · 2025-03-14
GONZALEZ RICHARD A
Director
$20.26M
@ $205.45 · 2025-03-03
RICHMOND TIMOTHY J
Officer
$4.47M
@ $210.45 · 2025-03-03
SIATIS PERRY C.
General Counsel
$5.82M
@ $208.69 · 2025-03-03
RICHMOND TIMOTHY J
Officer
$6.07M
@ $202.90 · 2025-02-26
BUCKBEE KEVIN K
Officer
$3.85M
@ $203.41 · 2025-02-26
SIATIS PERRY C.
General Counsel
$1.14M
@ $197.90 · 2025-02-20
BUCKBEE KEVIN K
Officer
$310,032
@ $172.24 · 2024-12-16
Direct ownership only · excludes indirect, option exercises, planned (10b5-1) sales & derivatives

Direct ownership only · excludes indirect, option exercises, planned (10b5-1) sales & derivatives.

🎭 Mr. Market's Mood

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A
FearGreed
😏Greed(64/100)

"Market is optimistic — be cautious and ensure you have a margin of safety"

Composite sentiment score based on 6 market signals. Inspired by Buffett's "Mr. Market" allegory — fear = potential opportunity, greed = potential risk. Must be used alongside fundamental analysis, not in isolation.
ABBV
FearGreed
😏Greed(72/100)

"Market is optimistic — be cautious and ensure you have a margin of safety"

Composite sentiment score based on 6 market signals. Inspired by Buffett's "Mr. Market" allegory — fear = potential opportunity, greed = potential risk. Must be used alongside fundamental analysis, not in isolation.

Composite sentiment score based on market signals. Inspired by Buffett’s "Mr. Market" allegory — fear = potential opportunity, greed = potential risk. Must be used alongside fundamental analysis, not in isolation.

⚖️ Buffett Signal

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A
⚪Awaiting DCF Data

The Buffett Signal cross-references market sentiment with DCF valuation. Configure the DCF Analysis above to generate a signal.

DCF Margin of Safety: N/AMr. Market's Mood: Greed (64)
ABBV
⚪Awaiting DCF Data

The Buffett Signal cross-references market sentiment with DCF valuation. Configure the DCF Analysis above to generate a signal.

DCF Margin of Safety: N/AMr. Market's Mood: Greed (72)
View A Full AnalysisView ABBV Full Analysis

Frequently Asked Questions: A vs ABBV

Is Agilent Technologies, Inc. or AbbVie Inc. more undervalued in 2026?▼

Based on our discounted cash flow model, ABBV trades at a -71.5% margin of safety (intrinsic value $172 vs. price $295), compared to A's -83.3% margin of safety (intrinsic $95 vs. $175).

Which stock has a wider economic moat, Agilent Technologies, Inc. or AbbVie Inc.?▼

ABBV scores 82/100 (Wide moat), while A scores 77/100 (Wide moat). The moat score measures competitive advantage durability across ROIC consistency, margin stability, revenue predictability, and reinvestment efficiency.

Is AbbVie Inc. in financial distress?▼

ABBV's Altman Z-Score of 2.4 places it in the Grey zone, signaling elevated bankruptcy risk. A scores 5.2 (Safe zone). The Altman Z-Score is a five-factor model that predicts insolvency within two years; scores below 1.81 indicate significant distress.

Which stock has higher return on invested capital, Agilent Technologies, Inc. or AbbVie Inc.?▼

ABBV earns 29.1% ROIC versus A's 12.9%. A higher ROIC means the company generates more profit per dollar of capital employed, a hallmark of durable competitive advantage in Buffett-style analysis.

Which dividend is safer, Agilent Technologies, Inc.'s or AbbVie Inc.'s?▼

A's dividend earns a safety score of 94/100 (Very Safe), compared to ABBV's 39/100 (Unsafe). A has raised its dividend for 3 consecutive years.