Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC Buys 1,198 Shares of Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS)

Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC raised its position in shares of Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS) by 3.7% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 33,621 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,198 shares during the period. Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC’s holdings in Novartis were worth $3,272,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on NVS shares. StockNews.com raised Novartis from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, February 8th. Barclays reissued an “underweight” rating on shares of Novartis in a report on Monday, February 3rd. UBS Group reaffirmed a “neutral” rating on shares of Novartis in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. HSBC lowered shares of Novartis from a “hold” rating to a “reduce” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. Finally, Morgan Stanley initiated coverage on shares of Novartis in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. They set an “underweight” rating on the stock. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating, one has given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Novartis has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $123.38.

Novartis Trading Down 1.0 %

NVS opened at $111.48 on Tuesday. The company’s 50 day moving average is $108.20 and its 200-day moving average is $107.10. The company has a market cap of $227.87 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.96, a PEG ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 0.53. Novartis AG has a 1-year low of $92.35 and a 1-year high of $120.92. 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 issued its earnings results on Friday, January 31st. The company reported $1.98 earnings per share 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 research analysts predict that Novartis AG will post 8.45 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Novartis Announces Dividend

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

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.