Tocqueville Asset Management L.P. Grows Stock Holdings in Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS)

Tocqueville Asset Management L.P. increased its stake in shares of Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS) by 10.6% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 118,913 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 11,395 shares during the period. Tocqueville Asset Management L.P.’s holdings in Novartis were worth $11,571,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Horizon Kinetics Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in Novartis by 3.3% during the fourth quarter. Horizon Kinetics Asset Management LLC now owns 12,547 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,221,000 after buying an additional 403 shares in the last quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Novartis by 3.6% in the fourth quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 14,417 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,403,000 after purchasing an additional 496 shares in the last quarter. Gallacher Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Novartis by 2.5% in the fourth quarter. Gallacher Capital Management LLC now owns 5,060 shares of the company’s stock valued at $492,000 after purchasing an additional 124 shares in the last quarter. Gitterman Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Novartis by 8.1% in the fourth quarter. Gitterman Wealth Management LLC now owns 3,324 shares of the company’s stock valued at $323,000 after purchasing an additional 249 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Greenwich Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Novartis by 5.6% in the fourth quarter. Greenwich Wealth Management LLC now owns 12,378 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,205,000 after purchasing an additional 653 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 13.12% of the company’s stock.

Novartis Stock Performance

Shares of NVS opened at $112.24 on Tuesday. Novartis AG has a 1 year low of $92.35 and a 1 year 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 company’s 50 day simple moving average is $105.65 and its 200 day simple moving average is $107.54. The company has a market capitalization of $229.41 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.09, a PEG 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, topping the consensus estimate of $1.80 by $0.18. Novartis had a net margin of 23.56% and a return on equity of 37.24%. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Novartis AG will post 8.45 EPS for the current year.

Novartis Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 12th. Investors of record on Wednesday, March 12th were given a dividend of $3.8695 per share. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, March 12th. Novartis’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 42.69%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have issued reports on NVS shares. HSBC downgraded shares of Novartis from a “hold” rating to a “reduce” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised shares of Novartis from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. StockNews.com raised shares of Novartis from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Saturday, February 8th. Erste Group Bank reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of Novartis in a report on Tuesday, November 19th. Finally, Barclays reissued an “underweight” rating on shares of Novartis in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating, one has assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $123.38.

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.