Glenmede Trust Co. NA Lowers Stake in Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS)

Glenmede Trust Co. NA lessened its holdings in Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS) by 5.1% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 37,613 shares of the company’s stock after selling 2,005 shares during the period. Glenmede Trust Co. NA’s holdings in Novartis were worth $4,326,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of NVS. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its position in shares of Novartis by 23.1% in the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 7,407,692 shares of the company’s stock valued at $788,626,000 after buying an additional 1,389,610 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its holdings in Novartis by 191.1% in the 2nd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 1,904,664 shares of the company’s stock worth $202,771,000 after acquiring an additional 1,250,318 shares in the last quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC raised its position in Novartis by 15.7% during the third quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 1,706,009 shares of the company’s stock worth $196,225,000 after acquiring an additional 231,851 shares during the period. FMR LLC lifted its holdings in Novartis by 5.5% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 1,353,412 shares of the company’s stock valued at $155,669,000 after purchasing an additional 70,314 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Chevy Chase Trust Holdings LLC grew its position in shares of Novartis by 31.7% in the second quarter. Chevy Chase Trust Holdings LLC now owns 1,112,491 shares of the company’s stock valued at $118,436,000 after purchasing an additional 267,490 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 13.12% of the company’s stock.

Novartis Stock Up 0.9 %

Shares of NYSE:NVS opened at $105.77 on Friday. Novartis AG has a 52-week low of $92.35 and a 52-week high of $120.92. The stock has a market cap of $216.19 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.28, a PEG ratio of 1.51 and a beta of 0.58. The business has a fifty day moving average of $110.72 and a two-hundred day moving average of $110.23. The company has a quick ratio of 0.90, a current ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55.

Novartis (NYSE:NVS) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 29th. The company reported $2.06 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.94 by $0.12. The firm had revenue of $12.82 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates 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 previous year, the firm earned $1.74 EPS. On average, research analysts expect that Novartis AG will post 7.66 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts recently weighed in on NVS shares. Jefferies Financial Group downgraded shares of Novartis from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 3rd. Bank of America cut Novartis from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and reduced their target price for the company from $135.00 to $130.00 in a report on Wednesday, September 11th. Erste Group Bank reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of Novartis in a research note on Tuesday, November 19th. The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $121.00 price objective (up from $119.00) on shares of Novartis in a research note on Thursday, September 5th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets raised their price objective on Novartis from $118.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $121.50.

Novartis Company 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.