Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS) Shares Sold by CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC

CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC lowered its stake in shares of Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS) by 8.3% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 451,562 shares of the company’s stock after selling 41,094 shares during the quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC’s holdings in Novartis were worth $45,256,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the stock. RWA Wealth Partners LLC grew its holdings in Novartis by 1.7% during the 4th quarter. RWA Wealth Partners LLC now owns 9,565 shares of the company’s stock worth $931,000 after acquiring an additional 160 shares in the last quarter. Tucker Asset Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Novartis by 11,352.4% during the fourth quarter. Tucker Asset Management LLC now owns 2,405 shares of the company’s stock worth $234,000 after purchasing an additional 2,384 shares during the last quarter. Intrust Bank NA grew its stake in Novartis by 2.5% in the fourth quarter. Intrust Bank NA now owns 10,913 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,062,000 after purchasing an additional 265 shares in the last quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. increased its holdings in Novartis by 19.1% in the fourth quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. now owns 63,045 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,135,000 after buying an additional 10,113 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC raised its stake in Novartis by 3.7% during the fourth quarter. Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC now owns 33,621 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,272,000 after buying an additional 1,198 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 13.12% of the company’s stock.

Novartis Stock Up 1.2 %

NVS stock opened at $112.69 on Monday. The stock has a market cap of $230.34 billion, a PE ratio of 19.17, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 0.53. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $107.92 and its 200 day simple moving average is $107.13. Novartis AG has a fifty-two week low of $92.35 and a fifty-two week high of $120.92. The company has a quick ratio of 0.84, a current ratio of 1.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48.

Novartis (NYSE:NVS) last announced 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 net margin of 23.56% and a return on equity of 37.24%. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Novartis AG will post 8.45 EPS for the current year.

Novartis Dividend Announcement

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

NVS has been the subject of several research reports. Barclays reiterated an “underweight” rating on shares of Novartis in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Morgan Stanley started coverage on shares of Novartis in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. They issued an “underweight” rating for the company. UBS Group reissued a “neutral” rating on shares of Novartis in a report 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, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded shares of Novartis from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given 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, Novartis presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $123.38.

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.