Tweedy Browne Co LLC Sells 2,206 Shares of Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS)

Tweedy Browne Co LLC cut its stake in shares of Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS) by 2.6% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 83,141 shares of the company’s stock after selling 2,206 shares during the period. Novartis comprises 0.5% of Tweedy Browne Co LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 22nd largest position. Tweedy Browne Co LLC’s holdings in Novartis were worth $8,090,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Human Investing LLC acquired a new stake in Novartis in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Union Bancaire Privee UBP SA acquired a new stake in shares of Novartis during the 4th quarter valued at $27,000. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Novartis during the 3rd quarter valued at $28,000. Kestra Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in Novartis during the 4th quarter worth $47,000. Finally, Clearstead Trust LLC acquired a new position in Novartis in the 4th quarter worth about $51,000. 13.12% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Novartis Trading Down 1.0 %

NYSE:NVS opened at $111.48 on Tuesday. Novartis AG has a 52 week low of $92.35 and a 52 week high of $120.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a current ratio of 1.04. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $108.20 and its 200-day moving average is $107.10. The firm has a market cap of $227.87 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.96, a P/E/G ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 0.53.

Novartis (NYSE:NVS) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 31st. The company reported $1.98 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.80 by $0.18. Novartis had a net margin of 23.56% and a return on equity of 37.24%. Equities analysts expect that Novartis AG will post 8.45 earnings per share for the current year.

Novartis Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 12th. Investors of record on Wednesday, March 12th were paid a dividend of $3.8695 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 12th. Novartis’s dividend payout ratio is currently 42.69%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently weighed in on NVS. HSBC cut Novartis from a “hold” rating to a “reduce” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. Barclays reissued an “underweight” rating on shares of Novartis in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Morgan Stanley assumed coverage on shares of Novartis in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. They issued an “underweight” rating for the company. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded shares of Novartis from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded Novartis from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Saturday, February 8th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating, one has assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Novartis presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $123.38.

About Novartis

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.