Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS) Shares Sold by Broderick Brian C

Broderick Brian C lowered its position in Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS) by 32.9% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 8,073 shares of the company’s stock after selling 3,960 shares during the period. Broderick Brian C’s holdings in Novartis were worth $786,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of NVS. Foundations Investment Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Novartis by 26.9% during the fourth quarter. Foundations Investment Advisors LLC now owns 89,074 shares of the company’s stock worth $8,668,000 after purchasing an additional 18,894 shares during the last quarter. CWA Asset Management Group LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Novartis by 20.1% in the 4th quarter. CWA Asset Management Group LLC now owns 30,840 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,001,000 after buying an additional 5,164 shares during the period. Chicago Partners Investment Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Novartis in the fourth quarter worth about $239,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its position in Novartis by 13.7% during the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 157,256 shares of the company’s stock valued at $18,088,000 after acquiring an additional 18,990 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Arvest Bank Trust Division acquired a new stake in shares of Novartis during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $2,674,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 13.12% of the company’s stock.

Novartis Stock Up 1.4 %

Shares of NYSE NVS opened at $112.37 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.04, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48. The company has a 50-day moving average of $108.90 and a 200 day moving average of $107.12. Novartis AG has a 12-month low of $92.35 and a 12-month high of $120.92. The stock has a market cap of $229.68 billion, a PE ratio of 19.11, a P/E/G ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 0.56.

Novartis (NYSE:NVS) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 31st. The company reported $1.98 EPS for the quarter, beating 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%. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Novartis AG will post 8.45 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Novartis Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed 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 of this dividend was Wednesday, March 12th. Novartis’s payout ratio is currently 42.69%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have weighed in on NVS. StockNews.com raised shares of Novartis from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Saturday, February 8th. Morgan Stanley started coverage on Novartis in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. They issued an “underweight” rating for the company. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised shares of Novartis from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. Barclays restated an “underweight” rating on shares of Novartis in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, UBS Group restated a “neutral” rating on shares of Novartis in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating, one has given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus 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.