171,947 Shares in Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS) Purchased by Eastern Bank

Eastern Bank purchased a new position in shares of Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS) during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor purchased 171,947 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $19,777,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its holdings in Novartis by 23.1% during the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 7,407,692 shares of the company’s stock worth $788,626,000 after purchasing an additional 1,389,610 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its stake in shares of Novartis by 191.1% in the 2nd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 1,904,664 shares of the company’s stock valued at $202,771,000 after acquiring an additional 1,250,318 shares during the last quarter. Magnetar Financial LLC increased its stake in Novartis by 53.7% during the 1st quarter. Magnetar Financial LLC now owns 1,906,046 shares of the company’s stock worth $184,372,000 after purchasing an additional 666,104 shares in the last quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board bought a new stake in Novartis during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $64,610,000. Finally, Mondrian Investment Partners LTD boosted its position in Novartis by 40.1% during the 1st quarter. Mondrian Investment Partners LTD now owns 2,065,739 shares of the company’s stock worth $199,819,000 after acquiring an additional 590,830 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 13.12% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on NVS shares. Barclays raised Novartis to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Monday, June 24th. Jefferies Financial Group downgraded Novartis from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 3rd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Novartis in a report on Friday, July 19th. Bank of America downgraded Novartis from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and cut their price objective for the company from $135.00 to $130.00 in a report on Wednesday, September 11th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $121.00 price objective (up previously from $119.00) on shares of Novartis in a report on Thursday, September 5th. One 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. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $120.70.

Novartis Stock Performance

NVS stock traded down $1.31 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $114.42. 501,592 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,337,063. The company has a current ratio of 0.93, a quick ratio of 0.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47. The firm has a market capitalization of $233.87 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.47, a P/E/G ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 0.57. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $116.39 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $108.22. Novartis AG has a 12 month low of $92.19 and a 12 month high of $120.92.

Novartis Company 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.