Capital Analysts LLC Has $434,000 Holdings in Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS)

Capital Analysts LLC decreased its stake in shares of Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS) by 23.1% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 4,303 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,295 shares during the period. Capital Analysts LLC’s holdings in Novartis were worth $434,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Murphy Middleton Hinkle & Parker Inc. increased its holdings in Novartis by 4.9% during the 4th quarter. Murphy Middleton Hinkle & Parker Inc. now owns 2,072 shares of the company’s stock worth $209,000 after purchasing an additional 97 shares in the last quarter. Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. lifted its stake in Novartis by 2.8% in the 4th quarter. Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. now owns 3,641 shares of the company’s stock valued at $368,000 after acquiring an additional 98 shares in the last quarter. Optimum Investment Advisors boosted its position in Novartis by 23.3% during the 4th quarter. Optimum Investment Advisors now owns 530 shares of the company’s stock worth $54,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. Chesley Taft & Associates LLC grew its stake in shares of Novartis by 0.3% during the 4th quarter. Chesley Taft & Associates LLC now owns 33,062 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,338,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Means Investment CO. Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Novartis by 1.3% in the fourth quarter. Means Investment CO. Inc. now owns 8,074 shares of the company’s stock valued at $815,000 after purchasing an additional 103 shares during the last quarter. 13.12% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Novartis Stock Down 0.1 %

NVS opened at $93.09 on Thursday. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $98.40 and its 200 day simple moving average is $99.08. The company has a current ratio of 1.15, a quick ratio of 0.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39. The stock has a market cap of $197.31 billion, a PE ratio of 12.97, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.45 and a beta of 0.54. Novartis AG has a 1-year low of $92.19 and a 1-year high of $108.78.

Novartis (NYSE:NVS) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, January 30th. The company reported $1.53 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.64 by ($0.11). Novartis had a return on equity of 29.90% and a net margin of 29.83%. The business had revenue of $11.42 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $11.69 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.51 EPS. As a group, research analysts expect that Novartis AG will post 7.15 earnings per share for the current year.

Novartis Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced an annual dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 7th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 8th were issued a dividend of $3.7772 per share. This is a positive change from Novartis’s previous annual dividend of $3.47. This represents a dividend yield of 3.1%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 7th. Novartis’s dividend payout ratio is 33.84%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have commented on NVS. Morgan Stanley initiated coverage on shares of Novartis in a research report on Tuesday, January 23rd. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $114.00 price target on the stock. BMO Capital Markets began coverage on Novartis in a research report on Friday, February 23rd. They set a “market perform” rating and a $114.00 price target on the stock. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, one has given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $104.33.

Novartis Company Profile

Novartis AG researches, develops, manufactures, and markets healthcare products in Switzerland and internationally. It 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.