Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS) Shares Acquired by HF Advisory Group LLC

HF Advisory Group LLC boosted its position in Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS) by 9.8% in the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 8,409 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 751 shares during the period. HF Advisory Group LLC’s holdings in Novartis were worth $967,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC lifted its stake in Novartis by 1,029.2% during the first quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 4,754 shares of the company’s stock valued at $460,000 after purchasing an additional 4,333 shares during the last quarter. Norden Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of Novartis during the 1st quarter worth $207,000. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. grew its holdings in shares of Novartis by 47.5% in the 1st quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 82,727 shares of the company’s stock worth $8,002,000 after acquiring an additional 26,632 shares during the last quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets raised its position in shares of Novartis by 30.6% during the first quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 10,499 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,016,000 after purchasing an additional 2,463 shares during the period. Finally, Central Pacific Bank Trust Division purchased a new stake in shares of Novartis during the first quarter valued at $403,000. 13.12% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Novartis Stock Down 1.0 %

Novartis stock opened at $109.40 on Wednesday. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $115.37 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $109.57. The firm has a market cap of $223.61 billion, a PE ratio of 12.71, a P/E/G ratio of 1.59 and a beta of 0.58. Novartis AG has a twelve month low of $92.35 and a twelve month high of $120.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55, a quick ratio of 0.90 and a current ratio of 1.11.

Novartis (NYSE:NVS) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The company reported $2.06 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.94 by $0.12. The business had revenue of $12.82 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $12.62 billion. Novartis had a net margin of 35.96% and a return on equity of 34.80%. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.74 earnings per share. On average, research analysts predict that Novartis AG will post 7.56 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

NVS has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price target on Novartis from $118.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft restated a “hold” rating on shares of Novartis in a report on Friday, July 19th. Jefferies Financial Group lowered shares of Novartis from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 3rd. Bank of America downgraded shares of Novartis from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and cut their target price for the company from $135.00 to $130.00 in a research note on Wednesday, September 11th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $121.00 target price (up previously from $119.00) on shares of Novartis in a research report on Thursday, September 5th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Novartis has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $121.50.

Novartis Profile

Novartis AG engages in the research, development, manufacture, and marketing of healthcare products in Switzerland and internationally. The company offers prescription medicines for patients and physicians. It focuses on therapeutic areas, such as cardiovascular, renal and metabolic, immunology, neuroscience, and oncology, as well as ophthalmology and hematology.