Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS) Shares Bought by Great Lakes Advisors LLC

Great Lakes Advisors LLC raised its position in Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS) by 10.9% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 20,902 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 2,048 shares during the quarter. Great Lakes Advisors LLC’s holdings in Novartis were worth $2,034,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Fisher Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in Novartis by 17.4% in the fourth quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 2,002,959 shares of the company’s stock valued at $194,908,000 after purchasing an additional 296,950 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC grew its holdings in Novartis by 5.5% in 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 during the last quarter. Chevy Chase Trust Holdings LLC grew its holdings in Novartis by 4.7% in the fourth quarter. Chevy Chase Trust Holdings LLC now owns 1,161,139 shares of the company’s stock valued at $112,990,000 after purchasing an additional 52,044 shares during the last quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Novartis by 2.9% in the third quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC now owns 938,844 shares of the company’s stock valued at $107,986,000 after acquiring an additional 26,317 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Novartis in the fourth quarter valued at $88,339,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 13.12% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on NVS. Barclays restated an “underweight” rating on shares of Novartis in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. HSBC downgraded Novartis from a “hold” rating to a “reduce” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. Erste Group Bank restated a “hold” rating on shares of Novartis in a research report on Tuesday, November 19th. Morgan Stanley began coverage on Novartis in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. They issued an “underweight” rating on the stock. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded Novartis from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, one has issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $123.38.

Novartis Stock Performance

NYSE NVS opened at $109.15 on Friday. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $105.36 and its 200 day moving average price is $107.68. Novartis AG has a twelve month low of $92.35 and a twelve month high of $120.92. The company has a market capitalization of $223.10 billion, a PE ratio of 18.56, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 0.53. The company has a current ratio of 1.04, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48.

Novartis (NYSE:NVS) last released its earnings results on Friday, January 31st. The company reported $1.98 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.80 by $0.18. Novartis had a return on equity of 37.24% and a net margin of 23.56%. On average, research analysts predict that Novartis AG will post 8.45 earnings per share for the current year.

Novartis Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 12th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, March 12th were issued a $3.8695 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, March 12th. Novartis’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 42.69%.

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.