The ratings on North Chicago, Ill.-based AbbVie Inc. reflect its "strong" business risk profile and "modest" financial risk profile. In the business risk profile, Standard&Poor's Ratings Services incorporates the expectation that AbbVie's key product--arthritis treatment Humira--will keep growing through additional uses and by expanding its pool of patients. AbbVie benefits from a drug pipeline that, although modest for a company of its size, could provide topline growth in the longer term, but its high dependence on a single product plays against its business risk profile. The financial risk profile incorporates our expectation that AbbVie will generate about $2.5 billion in discretionary cash flow over the next two years, helping it rapidly reduce its debt burden. If AbbVie sustains
