Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS) Shares Sold by Pointe Capital Management LLC

Pointe Capital Management LLC lessened its stake in shares of Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS) by 7.8% during the third quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 3,542 shares of the company’s stock after selling 300 shares during the period. Pointe Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Novartis were worth $407,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Private Ocean LLC acquired a new position in shares of Novartis during the first quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Clearstead Trust LLC boosted its holdings in Novartis by 73.5% during the first quarter. Clearstead Trust LLC now owns 269 shares of the company’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 114 shares in the last quarter. New Millennium Group LLC bought a new stake in Novartis during the second quarter worth approximately $28,000. Lynx Investment Advisory bought a new stake in Novartis during the second quarter worth approximately $29,000. Finally, Industrial Alliance Investment Management Inc. bought a new stake in Novartis during the second quarter worth approximately $30,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 13.12% of the company’s stock.

Novartis Trading Up 0.6 %

Novartis stock traded up $0.66 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $113.79. The stock had a trading volume of 904,084 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,332,378. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $116.42 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $108.64. Novartis AG has a twelve month low of $92.19 and a twelve month high of $120.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47, a current ratio of 0.93 and a quick ratio of 0.72. The firm has a market cap of $232.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.36, a PEG ratio of 1.66 and a beta of 0.57.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on NVS. Jefferies Financial Group cut shares of Novartis from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 3rd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft restated a “hold” rating on shares of Novartis in a report on Friday, July 19th. The Goldman Sachs Group restated a “neutral” rating and set a $121.00 target price (up from $119.00) on shares of Novartis in a report on Thursday, September 5th. Finally, Bank of America cut shares of Novartis from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and reduced their target price for the stock from $135.00 to $130.00 in a report on Wednesday, September 11th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Novartis presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $120.70.

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.